As Fate Wills It
by rosenzakura
Summary: Future fic. They thought it was the end then. Who knew that a few years down the road, they'd meet again and become more than expected as history repeats and alters. YukixFemmRyo.
1. Prologue

**A/N: **Multichaptered, future-sett. Generally canon excepting the femmryo part. YukiRyo :D

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It  
**

**Prologue**

Cheers, yelling. Everything was forgotten the minute the score was announced. The relief was near palpable for a split second before excitement took over. It was as though everyone had lost their heads at once. She wasn't even given the formality of congratulating her opponent on a good match – which that was, after all; not as hard as playing baka oyaji, no way, but still difficult – because her teammates were too busy jumping all over her in congratulatory and relieved conversation.

From there, the events passed quickly. The only point of the whole awards ceremony she could remember was when they were presented with the trophy. The rest of it was a blur of flashing lights and cheering voices.

But amid that entire hubbub, when she glanced over at what had been their _rival school _and _rival team_, she couldn't find it in her to say the usual 'mada mada dane.' They weren't substandard. That was absurd. Every match they had was won by close margins. And hell, they even lost 2 matches. She could hardly call them substandard.

But it wasn't just that. Maybe it was that look of loss, of confusion, that caught her. The lack of purpose where when they had been playing, it had been determined with a certain light.

It was precisely that that made her slide out to the sidelines, returning Syuu-nii's curious look with one that said 'don't ask, just cover for me' as they were making a raucous racket along the walk out to the buses.

No one noticed, thanks to her anuie, when she slipped out back where the Rikkai buses were waiting. Almost all of them had boarded. Majority, she noted, looked dejected. That wasn't unexpected but would just mean that they'd make her life difficult.

She did exactly what Syuu-nii would have said were he there: asked herself if she really wanted to do this. She could have walked away. She didn't owe them anything. But something in her just made her move.

No one noticed a seaweed head glare at her, yell at her, for coming to gloat. No one noticed as she calmly stared him down until his captain ordered them all on the bus, telling the other two thirds of the Troika, the Golden Three that he'd be fine and be right there.

She didn't gloat. She just did what she would have done after the match if her teammates had not swept her away. With nothing but understanding, in a sudden act of sympathy, she reached over, gave an encouraging squeeze to his hand before departing, comprehending that he'd need it to face the team eventually even if they didn't blame him.

They thought themselves quits then.

She had done what her instinct and conscience demanded and slipped back to her team with a mouthed 'domo' to Syuu-nii.

He had accepted the loss, and understood what she said – it was helpful, really. And that little encounter helped, even if he didn't admit it consciously.

Who knew that fate would will them back together.

* * *

**A/N: **And that's the starting for now. Not very much but I didn't think making sparks _fly_ just like that when she's _twelve_ is a sane thing to do... Like I said, future setting. I won't mess with canon much :D Please review! -iirse


	2. I: Remaking Acquaintances

**A/N: **Thanks to the nice people who reviewed and those who put this fic on story alert :D I hope this (rather short) chapter meets expectations at least halfway.

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 1**_** - Remaking Acquaintances**_

Echizen Reiko let a rare grin cross her face as she stepped from plane to airport. Two years away and now, it was time to play again. The professional circuits had gotten too boring since she kept winning. Oyaji had just laughed at her when she said it and went 'they are just too mada mada for you, isn't it?'

"Ne, Rei-chan how long are you going to stand there and grin to yourself?' A previously unknown presence made itself known behind her.

"Syuu-nii, you're still mada mada at sneaking around me, you know." Reiko smirked, turning around, and then turned again to glare accusingly at her elder brother. "You won't have anything to do with this ensemble, would you, anuie?"

Before them was the ensemble of what was once hailed as the 'Perfect Team.'

"Saa… I thought you'd like to see everyone. It is the grand reunion after all. We're headed to Taka-san's, Rei-chan." He brushed off her glare as if it were nothing and casually led her back amongst their chattering own.

* * *

"So… Finally Ochibi-chan is back from America." Kikumaru grinned at the girl who was still, despite her growth, the shortest of the team. "Fujiko just came back from that trip he took for the exhibition and contest, congratulations, by the way… Tezuka-buchou is also back from the doctor's appointment this morning…"

"Eiji…" Oishi sighed at his partner's ridiculous behavior.

"Oishi! Keep quiet, I'm getting to something!" Kikumaru pulled a sulky face for a moment before jumping back to lively. "As everyone's back, I'd like to propose a toast! Non-alcoholic, don't worry, Ochibi!" He grinned even wider at Reiko. "To our reunion and the reunion of the Three Monsters!"

* * *

And of course, at the same moment, there had to be an equally loud toast from the neighboring table. "To the reunion of us and the Three Demons!"

They turned to glare at each other before stopping.

"Seigaku?"

"Rikkaidai?"

Of course, in their shock, they failed to notice a particular girl look away and a particular captain start being restless. That is, except for the data masters and the resident blackmailer.

* * *

Somehow, despite everything they tried to do about it, the two schools more or less merged their mini parties. Reiko glared at Inui. He had initiated first contact by greeting his childhood friend with a "Renji, it is nice to see you."

Yanagi had either failed to see or ignored the subtle desperate glare-smile that Yukimura threw at him.

Syuu-nii turned traitor and responded to the Trickster's 'puri' and comments about playing a rematch – the two apparently hadn't had a match since Nationals, three years past.

Niou either missed his buchou's if-you-go-there-you're-dead-next-practice smile or just blithely ignored it seeing how a fellow Demon already _had_.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

The party had progressed to a fair high. Niou found Fuji good company. The sadistic tensai did like tormenting his teammates and with that angelic smile, it took manipulation, a skill he admired. Put together, they were a scary duo. It would have been made a trio had a certain equally sadistic captain not been avoiding a certain girl.

Both teams faced the horror of Seigaku's tensai and Rikkaidai's Trickster working together.

But as they say, all good things must come to an end (to the relief of many).

Momoshiro remembered he had a date with Tachibana An. He was let loose with much teasing, particularly on Reiko's part. Syuu-nii had been deficient in filling her in on that part.

Jackal made his excuses about having to run an errand for his mother, towing Marui with him. While the Troika could very easily handle a wayward Marui, a hyper one fueled by Niou and Kirihara's nonsense was trying even for them. But for odd reasons, the… Wallness of Jackal seemed to stop him. For that reason alone, at Rikkaidai gatherings, Marui left with Jackal.

Kaidoh 'fshh-'ed and left without any verbal excuse. It was quite obvious to the Seigaku half of the party that he was planning to take another run.

Slowly, everyone started drifting off. Tezuka had to go back to school to get something, the Golden pair had _something_ to attend to, as did the Platinum (Reiko said a mental 'mada mada,' they were _so_ unsubtle) and so on.

When all was left was herself, Fuji, Inui and the Troika, she started fidgeting nervously. Inui and Yanagi obviously were doing some long awaited catching up. Something on the faces of the rest indicated it was an 'at last.'

The fact that Syuu-nii was too busy talking to Taka-san was helping. Not.

She absolutely did not want to talk to any of the Troika.

Making up her mind, Reiko not-so-subtly delicately pressed her weight on her anuie's foot.

Fuji didn't even yelp. He just turned to her smiling that creepy smile – she _still_ wasn't used to it! "Ne, Rei-chan, you just had to open your mouth you know."

"It's _late_, Syuu-nii."

She could have sworn she saw a gleam in his half-opened eyes. "I'm sure you have stayed out later…" Then he got a look at the clock. "Shimatta. I'm late."

"Date?" She smirked. "Mada mada dane, Syuu-nii."

"Yes, with my brother." He replied dryly. "But I don't have time to walk you back and Nanji-san will kill me if I don't. And Yuuta…"

"You don't want to be late." She understood that much. His meetings with Yuuta-nii were rare and their relationship still mending. "I'll see myself back and handle oyaji."

Fuji shook his head. "No. I promised Nanji-san to see you back safely. Where's Inui… Maybe he could…"

Their resident data specialist was missing.

"He left with Renji a short while ago." Sanada droned out, monotone.

The siblings exchanged a look that said: 'how helpful' but had their silent conversation interrupted.

"How about we walk you back." Yukimura suggested, to Reiko's horror.

Reiko shot Fuji a _look_ that screamed 'accept-that-offer-and-you'll-die-an-infinite-times-over.' "I don't want to inconvenience you…"

"Actually you are headed to the train station right?" Fuji jumped in. At their nod, he went on. "Then it's on the way! And no, you are _not_ calling Atobe." He ordered her then he was out of the restaurant. "'Sankyu!"

Reiko glared at her anuie's quickly disappearing back before turning back to try and dissuade them.

* * *

"Really, it's fine!" Reiko protested as they stepped outside Kawamura Sushi. She had been saying it so many times she had lost count. "I can see myself back with no one the wiser or if you insist, I'll call Kei and get him to send a car."

Again, her protests were ignored. "We don't go back on our word, Echizen-san."

"Drop the –san, please." She gave in. "If you insist, then drop it."

The smile on Yukimura's face at that was way too much like her Syuu-nii's for Reiko's taste. She found herself inwardly shuddering as he quickly concluded a phone call with Yanagi and turned to his stone-like vice-captain. "Renji says he's staying for dinner at Inui-san's. He's outside the store, having bought everything. I'll meet you at the train station."

With that, the stone disappeared.

Reiko blinked. "Huh?"

"We meant to stop by a store for some things on the way back. Genichirou is meeting Renji to get it." He explained, letting her catch up.

Reiko just nodded, twisting up her hair under the trademark cap as she always did on the courts.

Uncomfortable silence ensued.

* * *

**A/N: **A kinda cliffie... I hope. Why she calls Fuji 'Syuu-nii' will be explained later. No, I am _not_ making her his long lost sister or something equally weird. That is just... so anti-canon and really! Anyway, please R&R! -iirse

_Last Edited: April 29, 2011_


	3. II: Dinner at the Echizens'

**A/N: **I lost the chapter with mistaken editting. Thanks for letting me know I had a repost (:

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 2**_** - Dinner at the Echizens'**_

Reiko walked silently, alternating between cursing serenely smiling idiots. One walking beside her, the other somewhere else. Syuu-nii was so dead after dinner. He was about to get trashed on the courts, definitely.

What was he _thinking_, putting her in this discomforting situation!

True, she had never told anyone why she had slipped out two years back. Nothing that Syuu-nii said managed to work. But it was plain awkward. She'd questioned herself after the incident many times: Wasn't she too contradicting? Rude and cocky on the courts then what with what she said after the game? Was it too forward?

Reiko decided the silence was doing things to her head. Maybe it was jetlag, but either way, she'd long decided not to think about such things. Scowling at her wayward thoughts, she made up her mind to voice those annoying thoughts to get rid of them.

"Ne…"

The exact same second Yukimura said the same.

Reiko's scowl came back. "You first."

"You should." She found that smile even more annoying than ever.

"I lost my mood." She retorted. "You."

He continued smiling serenely. "Then should we go back to uncomfortable silences so you can get your mood back?"

The scowl deepened. "Fine." When they dipped into silence, for a moment, he thought she intended to ignore him the whole way. Her tentative tone was a surprise. "It's been bugging me awhile… Did I go too far, the last time?"

He'd been getting amusement from her reactions but had to be stunned into silence at that. Their thoughts were along the same track, after all. Renji would probably say something like '_the probability of you two thinking about the last match while having only each other's company is 99.89%' _or something equally annoying. "–ver mind." He caught the end of her sentence.

"No, actually, I was thinking the same. But it was a match, wasn't it? We'd all do whatever we have to try and win. Who we are on the courts not necessarily equate to who we are off them." Yukimura found himself picking up pace to keep up suddenly, she'd obviously been upset.

Reiko found herself placated enough to slow again. "Ne, does that mean we can have a repeat just for fun? I haven't had a challenge except from Syuu-nii, Nii-san and Oyaji in ages."

This coming from the girl who had been playing pro circuits sounded really ridiculous. "For fun? You don't intend to wait till Nationals this time?"

"No, I need a challenge really badly." She stopped in front of a gate, unlocking it. "Come in, I'm dried after that walk and besides, it'd take time for your vice-captain to make two destinations." She paused on the driveway. "He _is_ still the vice-captain, I assume?"

"Most of our year's batch continued the same way your team did: into the high school. So yes, the placing are the same, mostly." He replied absentmindedly, following her.

Reiko tilted her head as though in consideration of this information. "Really? I knew Hyotei did, Kei bragged as much, annoying Monkey King that he is. Syuu-nii filled me in on Seigaku, obviously. But I never heard anything about Rikkaidai."

Then everything of that sort was temporarily forgotten when she spotted a particular car in the driveway. "'Nee-chan! Anuie!" She laughed and ran the rest of the way up.

"'Kaeri, Chibisuke." Ryoga threw at her. "You took your own sweet time, coming back home. Your luggage arrived hours ahead of you."

"Yumiko-nee-chan, anuie's bullying me!" She mock-cried. "Syuu-nii did say I was going out with the rest, didn't he?"

Yumiko laughed at her sister-in-law's antics. "He did. Who's this? I thought Syuusuke said he'd bring you back?"

"Ah, he was going to meet Yuuta-nii and lost track of time. Yukimura-san was kind enough to offer to bring me back." She turned and let out an impish smirk. They both knew how contrary she had been. "I invited him in for a drink, since we were in the middle of a conversation."

Reiko noticed Ryoga getting the 'Oyaji glint" in his eye and sighed. _What was it with overprotective men in the family? _"Yukimura-san, my 'nii-san, Echizen Ryoga and his wife, also Syuu-nii's 'nee-san, as I'm sure you've pieced by now, Yumiko-nee-chan." She glared at her brother. "Yukimura-san and I played against each other in Nationals 2 years ago, that's why the name is familiar, anuie. As it is, we were discussing tennis and nothing more."

"Syuusuke is getting trashed tonight," Was the only sentence that Yumiko and Reiko heard as Ryoga continued up the stairs, much to their amusement.

Yumiko recovered herself after that. "Where are my manners? Rei-chan, I'll get the drinks, you two continue talking."

Reiko grinned as she settled on the floor, picking up her snoozing cat. "Gomen ne, I was over excited. I haven't seen 'nee-chan and anuie for a few months now. But where were we?"

""You were mentioning playing a game before Nationals." He accepted the drink from Yumiko with a murmur of thanks.

"Right, I'm bored! The circuits bored me to death after a while and all I got to play was Oyaji and occasional games with Syuu-nii and anuie for challenge." Reiko took a sip of the Ponta that Yumiko had provided before smirking and finishing the can.

"Renji and Genichirou will probably protest," he similarly took a drink. "But I won't mind unless you intend to use the game to…"

Reiko let out a not-so-ladylike snort. "Ask Inui to watch and referee the game to gather data? Like that would be remotely useful. If you're worried about that, we can play doubles or something."

"You play doubles?" He threw her a surprised look. Last he heard was a disastrous doubles game after which she never played officially again.

She covered up the slight flush by taking another drink. "You're probably thinking of that horrible match I played with Momo-senpai. I play average doubles, usually for fun. When many of us want to use the court, we play for it."

He was about to reply when another voice rang through the house. "Rei-chan, we're back!"

Reiko's expression screamed '_Shimatta_,' in his opinion. "'Kaa-san's going to think exactly what nii-san thought. And she'd be happy. And oyaji will challenge you to play in 3 seconds." She explained breathlessly, before yelling. "Living area, 'Kaa-san."

A petite woman stepped into the room just as Reiko finished her explanation, followed by an unshaven monk. They struck him as a very contrasting pair, even as Reiko rose to greet her parents. "'Kaa-san, baka oyaji."

"Rei-chan, you didn't tell me you had a guest." Echizen Rinko exclaimed, once she finished checking her daughter over visually.

"Echizen-fusai." He greeted with manners that Yagyuu would have been proud to call his own.

Reiko cut in smoothly then, as she had earlier. "Oyaji, stop glaring, you look worse than normal when you do that." She rebuked as though she did it daily, before flowing into the same set of explanations she gave earlier to Yumiko and Ryoga.

"It was so kind of you to see Rei-chan home." Rinko replied to his greetings. "You must absolutely stay for dinner. Look at the time already!"

Reiko looked mortified, to Yukimura's amusement. "Exactly why you had best be going. Isn't Sanada-san," She made a face at that. "Waiting?"

"But that means the match is postponed isn't it?" He pointed out. She winced; she had wanted that match terribly.

"So it's settled. You'll stay for dinner and then you, Rei-chan, Syuusuke and Yuuta can play later. I doubt Nanji-kun would want to. Seeing how he'd be the odd old man out." She shot her husband a look that promised a world of pain should he even try to defy her before sweeping out of the room.

A few seconds later, she returned, pulling out Nanjiroh by the ear just as he had begun to open his mouth.

Yukimura turned his bemused serene smile on Reiko, her mortification obvious. "Your 'kaa-san's fast. I'll call Genichirou then."

She was too mortified to even think of a suitable comeback. For once in a long while, she agreed with her anuie: Syuu-nii was so getting trashed on the courts after dinner.

* * *

"_I really hate serenely smiling idiots,_" was all Reiko could think to say as she sat down, eating dinner. The fact that it was mostly her favorite dishes did little to placate her temper.

Fortunately, between Yuuta, Fuji and Yukimura the table was reasonably entertained by various stories. Majority of them concerned matches played after she left, something that out of her black mood, she would have enjoyed greatly.

But right now, she was too busy plotting Syuu-nii's demise to bother about much. She could probably squeeze in a lecture to 'kaa-san about letting people use her first name just like that in between the long, drawn out death of Syuu-nii as well.

'Kaa-san had apparently decided that since there were so many Echizens in the house: herself, oyaji, Reiko, Yumiko and Ryoga, that Yukimura could just call them by first names. He'd been very polite about it, of course, adding a –san to everyone's name but she could just _tell_ how amused he was by her discomfort. Reading Syuu-nii taught her that. And baka Syuu-nii was the only one to get last name basis, out of habit. She stabbed her food viciously.

"Rei-chan, is something wrong?" Yumiko asked, gesturing.

She caught herself. With no cap to hide her, she resorted to lifting her drink to her lips. "Iie, nee-chan, just contemplating something."

"You're itching to play _already_?" Ryoga stared at his sister in shock. She usually took a day off after a flight.

She smiled sweetly at him, the malice clearly written. "I just miss my _fun, _anuie."

Fuji played right into her trap. "You mean to play after dinner, Rei-chan? But Yuuta and I were going to…"

"Then standard rule applies." She gave him an overly-sugared smile. "Shall we?" She rose, gesturing. "I'll go change. Oh, Syuu-nii. Could either you or Yuuta-nii lend Yukimura-san something? You can take your pick of the rackets." She smirked at the thought of the slaughter following this, taking the stairs at record speed.

"I guess we'll hold the desert." Yumiko commented to Rinko, as their respective husbands started inhaling their food to watch the match.

* * *

Fuji stared at the spectacle before him. Usually, Reiko would play with Ryoga against him and Yuuta. They never bothered playing for it if Nanjiroh wanted to play: There would be simply no point in fighting a losing battle. This pairing was downright odd. How Reiko would challenge him and Yuuta to play a match against her and someone she had never played with before was very strange.

"Ne, Syuu-nii, we're playing for the court and all normal rules apply, right?" Reiko called from the other side of the net.

Fuji drew himself away from the thoughts, nodding at her. She turned to her partner. "It just means that he, and Yuuta-nii, hands over the court whenever I want to play for the next week or so."

Yukimura had learnt better than to question why. Explanations were not for the courts. "And you're planning to trash Fuji not just for the court but more than that."

Reiko's smile was too serene. For a moment, he caught why people were scared of his smile. "I am? Let's play then. Smooth, Yuuta-nii."

"Your serve, Reiko," Yuuta replied.

* * *

"The score?" Rinko asked her husband and son as she stepped outside after doing some washing up with Yumiko.

Ryoga didn't turn, too fixated on the match. "4-3, in Syuusuke-Yuuta pair's favor. Chibisuke's got that look in her eye even though she hasn't started the real seriousness yet."

"Ne, Syuu-nii, remember the match in the rain? It was this score then. I promised to beat you." She smiled as Fuji faltered and almost missed the ball she served.

Fuji dropped the smile, eyes opened. "That trick worked for Inui once, but it doesn't mean it works for you, Rei-chan."

"Mada mada dane, Syuu-nii." She retorted.

15 – 0

30 – 0

40 – 0

Match point.

"4 games, all." Ryoga called from the side.

Reiko picked up Fuji's fallen smile. "Serious time."

* * *

"Chibisuke is playing surprisingly well. It is an untried pairing after all." Ryoga commented. "Syuusuke and Yuuta have more doubles experience as a pair than them."

The count was at 5-4, in Echizen-Yukimura pair's favor, 30 all. They had taken another game when Reiko started playing seriously.

"Rei-chan's intention was to beat Syuusuke. But now, she's been caught up in plain _fun_ of it," was Yumiko's input. As always, she read the person, not the game and worried that because of the game Yuuta and Syuusuke's relationship might take a setback again.

She needn't have worried. Yuuta knew it would be hard match from the start. While his anuie had lowered the standard a little, he'd played as though they were on equal footing. Two years past, they were the best in junior high and the one to beat the best in junior high. He refused underestimate that.

"The fact that captains rarely play in official doubles matches," Yukimura returned Fuji's shot with a smash. "Doesn't mean you should underestimate us."

The ball very neatly went out. It appeared that more than one person had picked up on that little weakness.

40 – 30

"Thanks for the help, Seiichi-san." She smiled up at her partner. Yukimura had insisted on it, in the middle of the match, that since he could use her first name, so she could use his. It was to her mother's great delight, of course.

"You're one point away, Rei-chan." Fuji called. "Don't lose your concentration." He served.

She missed. He covered for her. The ball came back, Yuuta had received.

As though they had preplanned it, they changed positions. Rikkaidai's volley specialist's move met them across the net.

"Marui's Tightrope Walking." Yukimura smiled serenely at Fuji as Ryoga announced the score.

"Game and match, Echizen-Yukimura pair, 6-4." He turned to comment on the match only to find that Nanjiroh had walked back into the house, muttering about desert.

Reiko grinned. "Finally. It was interesting playing with you, but I think it'd be more fun playing _against _you." She started walking to the side of that court that Fuji and Yuuta had vacated, making a note to apologize to Yuuta-nii later.

"Smooth or rough then?" He asked.

"Smooth, as always." She walked away.

"Rough. My service. Self-judge?" She gave a barely imperceptible nod.

It was a normal serve, for that she was grateful as she had yet to get rid of the excitement from winning. It was simple rallying then, a cool down of sorts.

"Rei-chan!" Yumiko called. _Damn._ She cursed as she missed the ball when she looked up. "Phone."

"That wouldn't count." Yukimura answered her questioning look as they entered the house together and she accepted the phone from her 'nee-chan.

"_Hello?_" She deliberately answered in English. She switched right back to Japanese though. "Ah, Yanagi-san. Is there something wrong?"

"Yes, Seiichi-san is still over here." She rolled her eyes, before alarm crossed her features. "Oh, I'll get him to call at once, of course. By the way, Yanagi-san, how did you get my number?"

He winced; there was a certain pissed-off tone to that question. "Ah, Inui-senpai, I see. Alright, ja ne."

She snapped the cell phone shut. "Apparently, your 'kaa-san is panicking. Yanagi-san says she called Sanada-san to ask and he, in turn, called him."

His face was priceless even as he attempted to maintain the serene smile. "Could I borrow your phone for a while? The earlier I call, the lesser the ear damage."

Wordlessly, she handed the phone over. What happened following that had her laughing. He'd phoned his mother, and had been yelled at. After mentioning where he was and who he was with, the slight wince at volume had changed to him turning into at least 3 shades of red. "Iie, 'kaa-san! It's not like that!" But his protests had been cut off by the dial tone.

"Your 'kaa-san seems to move fast as well, Seiichi-san." She smirked, pulling the phone out of his limp grasp, returning the compliment.

"I don't ever want to see them in the same room, Reiko-san." He replied with fervor. She shuddered at the thought. "I had better go though."

"We have to reschedule this game then. Street courts?" She suggested. "There are some on the way here. I think I pointed them out."

"There are some outside school as well, if you know the way." He gave her a few directions. "We'll decide depending on time then."

They made their way back to where they had left their school things, by which time they had exchanged numbers. "I'll contact you when I'm free then?"

She consented with a nod. "Oh, keep the clothes for now. Nii-san, whichever of the three of them, won't miss them. You can pass them back when we play again." She saw him out.

* * *

Later that evening when she came down from her bath to eat her desert, Rinko surprised her. "Rei-chan, you know, I won't mind if you two got together." Reiko choked, nearly spitting out her desert.

"'Kaa-san! It isn't like that!"

And life went on in the Echizen household where cats attacked monks at midnight, brothers sat playing cards… and a girl chased after her mother, trying to get it into her head that she was definitely not considering dating.

* * *

_Last Edited: April 29, 2011_


	4. III: Back to School

**A/N: **Ty to all who reviewed (: Finally updating, I know! **Kuroi Kuu**: it'll be in a side story-ish thing later on, yeah? When, I'm not too sure yet. My planning's only maybe 2 or 3 chapters ahead

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 3**_** - Back to School**_

It was a treat, Reiko decided, that Rinko had offered to send them to school that day. Her work would begin the following day, so she had the day off.

Since Yumiko and Ryoga had taken over the Fuji house, Yuuta and Syuusuke stayed with the Echizens. Yuuta was still in boarding school, so he and Syuusuke and he shared Ryoga's old room when he was home.

The car ride had advantages. For one, it gave her a moment to review some notes for the acceleration test she had to take that morning. For another, she could give Syuu-nii a quick talk about no overprotective attitudes, despite the fact that it was a lesson in futility.

"Echizen!" She was walking to the office when a yell came up from behind. A noisy Momoshiro clattered up the steps. "Fuji-senpai." He greeted the other. "Why weren't you at home? I stopped only to find that you had gone on ahead."

Oh, right. The old routine. Reiko felt sheepish. "Mada mada dane, Momo-senpai. I may not even have to call you senpai anymore!"

She increased her pace after that, ignoring his demands as to what exactly did she mean.

* * *

"Very well done, Echizen-san. If you wanted, I think you could even accelerate to third year." The teacher commented.

"Iie, I don't want to get too far ahead." Reiko refused the offer. _Besides, Momo-senpai and Kaidoh-senpai will simply die if I get to third year. That means that they have to call their chibi 'senpai.' _Maybe she should, on that thought. It would be quite amusing.

"Are you sure? I understand you are friends with many of the third years." The teacher tried to persuade her.

_Oh. Right. Inui-senpai's juice. Kikumaru-senpai's glomping. Syuu-nii getting to watch me all the time. Kawamura-senpai's random 'BURNING!' Oishi-senpai's mothering. Tezuka-buchou getting chances to assign me laps… _The horror of having any third years near her erased any thoughts of torturing her second year senpai-tachi. "I-Iie, I'll stick to second year!" She blurted out.

"If you are sure." Replied the teacher reluctantly. "You'll be in class 2-1. Here's your schedule. You can get your uniform later."

Reiko grimaced at the last part, and left the office after thanking the teacher only to be pounced on by Momoshiro. "Ne, Echizen. What took you so long?"

"Momo-senpai, where's class 2-1?" She asked, waving her schedule in his face.

He blinked, baffled, completely missing the class written largely on the piece of paper. "What? Why do you want to go there? Wait, let me see that!" He reached for the schedule.

"Yadda." She avoided his grasp, quickly folding it and stuffing it into a pocket. She knew he won't dare take it.

"Baka. She's been accelerated, most likely." Kaidoh 'fshh'-ed.

"What did you call me, Mamushi?" Momoshiro forgot about her altogether and the two started a fight. Again.

With a sigh, she broke it up before either of them got detention. "Enough. I'd have thought you two outgrew this already. How on earth did you two be buchou and fukubuchou after the senpai-tachi left is beyond me. Someone tell me how to get to class. Now. I want a nap."

Kaidoh 'fshh'-ed and looked the slightest bit ashamed. Momoshiro just ignored everything. "Next to mine. I'll show you."

The class next to hers turned out to be 2-6. Unable to resist, she teased. "Ne, Momo, I thought next door would be 2-2. Did dating Tachibana-imouto do something to your grades?"

He instantly turned red. "What are you talking about, Echizen! And what happened to the 'senpai?'"

She waved the schedule again. "I accelerated. I'm in second year. Why do I have to call you 'senpai?' Mada mada dane."

She was in class before he could say another word. He muttered something under his breath that sounded like _'Drat that Echizen chibi.'_

* * *

Running for her life, Reiko wondered how normal people dealt with this. Having figured out where her senpai-tachi would be, she ran towards the courts with only one thought in mind: get away from the lunatics otherwise known as fan clubs. They'd only gotten worse the years that passed.

Once she spotted them, she abandoned dignity. "Syuu-nii! Help! I'll give you the blackmail material I've been holding over anuie and nee-chan! Oh and Kei too!"

"Saa… I just have to agree with such a tempting offer, ne, Rei-chan?" Fuji replied.

Before he could do anything, however, Tezuka had yelled. "Anyone who is _not_ playing is to get off the courts unless they want to run 200 laps. Now!"

The insane people instantly disappeared. "Ne, Rei-chan, are you alright?" A smiling Fuji helped her up.

"No blackmail for you, Syuu-nii. Wipe that look off, now." She glared, tugging down the cap. The rest of the team looked in confusion. _What look?_ Was written across their faces.

"Nya, Ochibi-chan! You intend to join us again then?" Kikumaru glomped her.

She tried to avoid him, really she did, but the acrobatic player was just too unpredictable. "Senpai… Can't breathe!" She flailed, trying to get free.

"Eiji, she's going blue." Oishi pried his partner off an extremely relieved Reiko.

"Nya? Gomen, Ochibi!" He made to glomp her again, in apology. She managed to avoid this time.

"Enough of this, or you'll all be doing laps." Tezuka got fed up waiting for them to calm down.

Reiko grinned at Fuji. "Really, it's just like Syuu-nii said. Tezuka-buchou never changes."

"Answer the question, Echizen!" Momoshiro demanded. "Are you joining us then?"

"Mada mada dane, Momo…" She smirked.

"Nya? Ochibi, why are you so disrespectful, nya?" Kikumaru demanded.

She blinked. "But I called you 'senpai'… Syuu-nii is Syuu-nii… Tezuka-buchou is Tezuka-buchou… Why am I disrespectful?"

"You didn't call Momo 'senpai,' Rei-chan." Fuji pointed out, smiling faux-angelically.

She blinked again, again in confusion. "But I don't need to."

"Eiji and the rest don't _know_ that." Fuji, again, helpfully pointed out. Kaidoh 'fshh'-ed and turned away as Momoshiro did as well.

"Oh…" Realization dawned. "I took the acceleration test, I'm in second year now. Yes, Syuu-nii, I turned down the offer for third year."

"Nya?" The third years, with the exception of Fuji, fell down comically. Kikumaru revived quickly. "But that means… If you hadn't… You won't be calling _us_ senpai as well!"

She made a non-committal sound of agreement.

In his embarrassment, Momoshiro tried to change the subject. "So are you, Echizen?"

"Isn't it obvious?" She indicated her tennis things. "Do we still have intra-ranking?"

The question was directed at Oishi and Tezuka, the latter choosing to answer. "I took the liberty of putting your name down since Fuji said you'd be back in time. We'll be starting when the rest arrive, which should be soon."

* * *

Soon had been an understatement. The second Tezuka had said that, the rest of the club started trickling in as if on cue. She cheerfully slaughtered 2 non-regulars, before heading out to report it.

"Inui-senpai, 6-0 for the first two." She smirked saying it.

"Ah, as expected from you, Echizen." Inui replied, writing it down before continuing to mutter calculations under his breath. When he realized something was boring into his skull, he looked up. It was Reiko's stare. "Echizen?"

"Why did you give Yanagi-san my number? Wait, why _did_ you have my _cell phone_ number anyway? I got it _after_ I left." She demanded.

He gulped inwardly. "Renji needed it. I got it as part of data collecting…" The answer didn't work.

"It looks like I'm playing you later, senpai." She smirked before walking off blithely leaving a fearful Inui in her wake.

* * *

"Oi, Racquet Thief, you have to better than this!" Reiko was having a _lot_ of fun giving her now-fellow second year grief.

Even if Arai had replaced Kawamura-senpai in senior high, he didn't stand a chance against her. Reiko knew that and worse, Arai himself knew it.

She gave him a decent chance, playing with her left hand but not going all out, but he was still sadly substandard. It was no surprise when the score was announced at 6-2. The two games were just a mercy.

"Inui next, then Momo, Echizen." Oishi told her when she reported in the score.

"Inui-senpai will be fun to play," Was the only comment that half of the Golden Pair got out of her.

* * *

She played her first game mildly, right handed, knowing that the first game was Inui's way of gauging some data at least, especially since it was her service game. On his service game, she very happily went all out.

No new tricks, just the same old moves. Reiko had no intention to give any of her new trump cards a chance to be examined by the resident data master. After all, if he could leak her number to Yanagi, he could very well accidentally say something. She didn't think he'd jinx the team's chances but the quicksand of the circuits had taught her better.

She won 6-3 and noticed Fuji looking at her, neutral but eyes opened – he suspected something.

"Echizen, you didn't use anything new." Inui commented.

She returned the veiled question easily. "I didn't see the need, senpai. Besides, like you, I've been out of the loop too long to know what the present standards are like." _Like you, I was trying to gauge how much you have changed._

Momoshiro cut the conversation short. "Oi, Echizen, time to play!"

She nodded briefly to Inui before heading for the next court. Momoshiro didn't play seriously. He figured it was a foregone conclusion. She didn't bother to insist on his playing seriously. It was his choice. She won, 6-3 again.

"You didn't bother to play properly." She stated as they made their way out to tell Oishi the scores.

Momoshiro shrugged. "There wasn't a point, Echizen. You'd have won. Looks like I have to play Inui-senpai for a spot then."

Reiko stopped for a can of Ponta then. "The irony. Good luck then. I think I'll head off first, ja ne." She mock-saluted with the can, walking off.

_I wonder if Seiichi-san's free. _She mused. _All the playing today just made me long for even more challenges._

* * *

**A/N: **Yes, full Seigaku with only a mention at the end of Rikkai. I know the bit with Inui's kinda farfetched, but I was really lazy to think up of new moves. I swear, my sister's acting like Shikamaru (lazy person who always says 'troublesome' from Naruto) is rubbing off me. Gomenasai for the late update! School's just been _hell_. I'll be updating as much as possible over this June hols simply 'cause once school starts, I'll be slow again. Anyway! Please R&R. -iirse

_Last Edited: April 29, 2011_


	5. IV: It's Not a Date, Dang You!

**A/N:** So soon, compared to the last gap, I know! **Aya-Mikage2002: **Sorry for the late update again. I do that when I'm bored too. Run out of things to read = go read unupdated stuff. My school year officially ends in... Nov? June's just a 1 month break =.= The fluffy-ness is coming in few chapters time (: **precious92**: You're a '92 kid too? heh. Glad you liked it. And enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 4**_** - It isn't a Date, Dang You!**_

Away in Rikkaidai, a certain captain sneezed. "Someone's talking about you." Yanagi commented. "It was a good match as always, Seiichi."

"Aa…" Yukimura replied, absentmindedly. "Renji, follow last year's pattern, of sorts." He needn't explain, the pattern would be adhered to and if necessary, altered slightly.

"Of course. We Demons have finished trashing each other, so we can start trashing Akaya and the team." Yanagi ran it over verbally to double check. "Followed by trashing any of the hopefuls. Most of them will have given in by the time we're done, but all the same."

Yukimura would have replied, except that a yell came in the distance. "'Mura, phone!" Marui near-screamed. Yukimura sighed. This was getting familiar.

"It's some girl." Marui explained, jittery, holding the cell phone as though it were a time bomb. "She told me off very politely when I asked who she was."

Taking the proverbial leaf from Reiko's book, he answered in English as well. "Hello?"

"_Learning from me now, Seiichi-san?" _Reiko's voice came from across the line. "_I'm complimented, but who is the baka I spoke to earlier?"_

He detected the temper in her voice. "Ah, that was Marui."

"_I'll have to see what Kei and Jirou can help me come up with then._" She lapsed into silence. He sweat dropped, wondering just what was she planning.

"Was there something you called for, Reiko-san?" Yukimura berated himself silently as Yanagi and Marui's interest was evidently piqued.

She was startled back into life by that. "_Oh, I wanted to ask you if you were free."_

"I am. Why?" The curiosity in the room increased exponentially, in Yanagi's words, at the simple reply.

"_I finished the ranking matches already and there's absolutely nothing to do. No homework, nothing." _She sighed. "_I'm bored out of my wits. It's either face 'kaa-san's working on me or playing oyaji and losing miserably. So I was wondering if you wanted to go and play some."_

He packed in the racquets with a hand, the other still holding the phone. "I just need to do a bit of debriefing before I'm done as well. Do you want to meet at your side or mine?" Marui's eyes widened at that. Yukimura made a note to threaten Marui subtly.

"_Yours then, since I'm free completely. I'll see you there. Ja." _She clicked off. The look on his teammates' faces was _not_ promising.

* * *

Walking quickly back to her things, Reiko silently prayed she won't be noticed by anyone. It'd be just awkward to turn down her teammates' offers to go wherever and have to explain it.

Fate wasn't on her side that day.

"Ochibi! Let's go for burgers, nya! You can treat!" Kikumaru had obviously finished his matches and very nearly, again, glomped her.

She winced. "Yadda."

"Fine, I'll treat, since it's your first day back, nya." His face had the distinct begging quality to it. "Oishi has to stay back and I have no one to hang out with, nya, Ochibi!"

The offer was so tempting. Free burgers, a chance to be ahead of Momoshiro to make a senpai's wallet anorexic… Too bad she already had something on. _Why couldn't he have asked earlier? _"I can't, I got to go somewhere, senpai."

"Where, nya? Can I come?" He positively lit up at the idea. "I'll treat you after!"

"Yadda." Oh the horror…

"Nande?" If he wasn't pulling the sulky face now, she would eat her words, Reiko decided as she refused to look at her senpai. "Oh don't tell me, it's a date! Alright, I won't intrude on your date then!"

And fate decided to send her another little present, in the form of Fuji Syuusuke. "Who's on a date?" Correction: a dangerous Fuji Syuusuke.

"Fujiko!" Kikumaru happily glomped him. Somehow, Fuji managed not to get suffocated. "Ochibi-chan is going on a date!"

She knew there would be at least a _tinge_ of pink on her face now. Tugging the cap down, she panicked. Syuu-nii would definitely overreact. "Date? With whom, Rei-chan?"

"Iie, it's not a date, Syuu-nii!" She tried to keep her tone even. "I'm just meeting Kei to play that's all."

"Saa… It's like that, is it?" Fuji's opened eyes promised a further interrogation when they were at home. "I'll see you this evening then." He turned to the saddened Kikumaru. "Hey Eiji, want to come over?"

_Crap._ Reiko cursed in reflexive English. She made a mental note not to go home for dinner that night. Maybe she'd really call Kei and ask if she could hide overnight at his place, she considered.

* * *

"Who was that, 'Mura?" Marui prodded. "Yanagi, do you have any idea?"

Yukimura shot a certain _look_ at Yanagi. The message was clear: Say one word and you die. Yanagi settled for a vague answer. "Someone we all know but not in close context."

"Yanagi!" The frustration on Marui's face would have been funny, except that Yukimura was too busy trying to save his own skin. "Don't tell me it's a date!"

"'Mura has a date, puri?" Niou walked up, Sanada not too far behind him. They had obviously just finished matches. "What's the rundown, Yanagi?"

Yanagi found himself in a very odd situation. His math partner was giving him the curious look that promised pranking should he not comply. His good friend was giving him a look that promised retribution if he did. "Ah, Seiichi was just on the phone. Marui was jumping to conclusions that have yet to be confirmed."

"Conclusions that are obviously wrong." Yukimura finished.

Marui wasn't about to let the chance go. "You were talking to a _girl_ that I've never heard before; or heard of before, for that matter. You were _planning_ to meet up somewhere. "

"Meeting up with a girl does not classify as a date, Marui." Yukimura pointed out. "It is personal business anyway. Thank you, Marui, now I'm about to be late."

Marui knew he was in for a whole new world of pain.

"Ah, Genichirou." Yukimura finally realized his vice-captain had been in the room for a large part of time. "Would you and Renji see to the debriefing? I meant to do it myself but Marui here has made me late."

They automatically following his lead when they stepped out of the clubroom, curiosity and habit being the reasons. "Oh, and Marui, 100 laps. Renji will see to it that you complete them. If you don't, they can just carry over to next practice. 10 more for each 5 that you fail to complete today. Ja."

He left a slack jawed Marui in his wake, being made fun of incessantly by Niou. In the distance, he could hear the other two breaking up the argument and assigning punishment duties. Delegating, he decided, was definitely useful.

* * *

Reiko cursed traffic and stupid annoying older brothers. "I'll text about dinner, nee-chan! Ja!" Slamming the door shut in her haste, she ran for the courts. Ryoga, she decided, was so dead.

"You ran all the way?" There was definitely incredulity in that tone.

"I got nee-chan to drive me but nii-san freaked out. Syuu-nii and Kikumaru-senpai were being annoying before I left school as well. At least Syuu-nii won't get to interrogate me tonight; he'll be too busy getting trashed by nii-san." She rattled off. "Shimatta. I sound like that muttering freak."

"You mean Ibu, formerly of Fudomine? Yes, for a moment, you did." Yukimura laughed.

"That baka called me short more than once in a single rant when I played him." Embarrassed, she re-twisted her hair, tucking it under the cap again. "Let me make a call and we can play."

"_Who dares interrupt Ore-sama's practice time?"_ She rolled her eyes at the pompous tone.

"Kei. It's me. Can you get me later and can I come over for dinner tonight?" The shortness would make him annoyed, she knew, and did it deliberately.

"_Rei. You finally resurfaced. Where are you and what are you avoiding?"_ She cursed softly at the question. Damn the guy for being able to read her. It was payback for the shortness and they both knew it.

"Kanagawa, street courts near Rikkai. I'm avoiding Syuu-nii's interrogations." That much was true, even though she _was_ avoiding her mother (whom Yumiko was bound to tell about today's expedition) and Ryoga as well. "You know you want to help me with that."

She smirked at his reply. "_It is true that Ore-sama likes spoiling Fuji Syuusuke's plans. Very well, Ore-sama shall help you. I'll see you when my practice is done. Ja ne._"

"Ja, Kei. And drop the 'ore-sama' crap. It makes you sound stupid. Plus you'll never get a girl that way." She disconnected on his flustered squawking protests. Rapidly, she sent off a text to Yumiko telling her she intended to eat dinner out and would be back later.

"Done!" She picked up her favorite racquet.

"Was that Hyotei's Atobe?" Yukimura asked as they walked on to the nearest free court.

She nodded. "Maybe I'll stay over to avoid baka Syuu-nii further. Continue with the previous game then?"

At his affirmative, she moved to the back. _This is going to be fun._

* * *

They were at a tiebreak. 6 games all, 32-31 in Yukimura's favor. It had been going on for so long now they'd lost track of time. What had started off as tentative had resulted in both of them going all out and still vying at the tiebreak earning points nearly alternately.

The fact that the neighboring courts were filling up was not a good sign either. Both had meant to finish the game before most players came out: It did no good for other schools to know their strength.

"Seiichi." A voice sounded from behind Reiko. She didn't falter and returned the ball that he missed. 32-all.

"Renji. Genichirou." Yukimura replied to the greeting. "Practice is over, I take it?"

"I see no harm in saying it here." Yanagi indicated Reiko. "The same team as you predicted. Marui and Jackal will be happy to be able to play again."

She approached the three, racquet tapping. "I think we'll call it quits and take it from here next time. 6-all, 32-all. There are no benefits in letting others see." She gestured the neighboring courts, politely ignoring Yanagi's slack jaw. "If your practice is done, Kei should be here soon."

"Hey, doubles only!" A group of players yelled from the neighboring courts.

Smirking, Reiko got that gleam in her eye. "Ne, Seiichi-san, how about we play doubles again?"

"Renji? If you and Genichirou would comply?" Yukimura stunned the newly recovered data master again.

* * *

So that was how Atobe found them half an hour later: playing a surprising close game of doubles. His eye twitched at the sight of Sanada but he didn't say anything to that. Reiko would get a rundown of why she shouldn't socialize with him later.

"Rei." She missed the ball at that, Yukimura covered for her.

"Go away, Kei. I'm playing!" She shot back, fed up she had missed the relatively easy ball.

"You're not going all out." He pointed out.

She gave him a look that said 'obviously.' "I'm not about to give away things like that."

"You already went all out earlier, Reiko-san." Yukimura couldn't help pointing out.

She shot _him_ a look now. "No one was here and so did you. We are definitely finishing that game eventually."

"What's the score?" A bored Atobe asked.

"3-2, our lead." Reiko replied.

Atobe gaped at her. "Have you two ever played together?"

"I asked as much." Yanagi replied for her. "They played against – "

"Syuu-nii and Yuuta-nii." She finished. "Shall we play this all the way out in this watered down version of a game or rematch another time?"

"I call a rematch." They said in perfect timing.

Yanagi gave them a wry look. "If you and Seiichi weren't from opposing schools, you'd have made an interesting doubles pair." They exchanged a look of confusion. Yanagi was hard-pressed to explain. "You two play surprisingly well for people who don't play doubles and hardly played with each other as a pair and against each other."

"We'll have a rematch another time then." Sanada tried cutting the conversation short. The dislike between him and Atobe was mutual. And the match had been trying, psychologically, anyhow.

In mutual agreement, they walked off to their things. "Whenever you're free?" Yukimura asked.

She shrugged delicately. "When you are."

"I'll let you know then. Your side, the next time." It would be unfair for her to go out of her way again, he decided.

"Aa… I'll see you then. You'd better go, Sanada-san and Yanagi-san are waiting." She gestured before turning to Atobe. "Ja!"

He heard a bit of squabbling behind him as he left. Turning, he saw Reiko yell a 'Yadda!' at Atobe as the latter tried to persuading her. Their closeness was enviable.

"Seiichi?" Yanagi called.

"Coming." Yukimura called back. It was a nice picture, despite the slight twist he felt at the thought. Besides, he still had to convince the two that it was definitely _not_ a date.

* * *

**A/N: **This is relationship hint heavy. Hope it came out the way I saw it. Figure it out (: -iirse

_Last Edited: April 29, 2011_


	6. V: Hyotei and Atobes

**A/N: **Tq for the reviews (: **Crazy Hyper Lady**: There's more than just _one_ jealous bit there!** Aya-Mikage2002**: Is it that predictable? Misunderstandings are coming in soon, definitely. Anyway, enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 5**_** - Hyotei and Atobes**_

"Yadda" Reiko stalked ahead of Atobe to the limo she knew was waiting at the road side, probably jamming traffic.

"Rei… Just for 'kaa-san's birthday, just this once!" Whoever said Atobes didn't beg was sorely mistaken.

She hated that card. She knew how much she was adored by his mother but… "'Kaa-san will bring me shopping. You know the horrors of that. Besides the party itself!"

"I'll shop for you." He pounced on that, sensing she was softening. Reiko shot him a doubtful look. "I'll get Oshitari to." He amended.

"I'll – " She stopped at the sight of what she saw inside the limo.

Shishido and Mukahi were arguing over some inane topic as always.

Oshitari threw in an occasional word absently while reading what she was sure was a (trashy) romance novel. Words that obviously did nothing to calm his partner down, but rather antagonized Mukahi further.

"Kei. What the hell is going on?"

Atobe just ignored her statement and packed her neatly into the limo, entering after her. "Class work. Grouped. Mukahi, Shishido, 10 laps during next practice."

"Nani? Can't a person have an intellectual discussion?" An affronted Mukahi demanded.

Oshitari chose then to look up from his book. "Don't try to use my phrases, Gakuto." Then returned to his page.

"Intellectual discussions mean you actually have to have some intellect which you don't have, Mukahi." Shishido interjected.

"20, the both of you. Oshitari, put away that piece of filth or you'll be joining them." Atobe ordered.

Oshitari closed the book, to Reiko's surprise... until he spoke that was. "I'm sure you don't want certain secrets spilled, Atobe."

She sighed. What was it with tensais and blackmail? "Very well then, you may read the book as long as you do not speak of it."

"Tensais and blackmail." She muttered, tugging the cap out of habit. Unfortunately, that garnered the attention of her car-mates that had not really paid much attention to her prior to that.

Oshitari was the first to recover, unsurprisingly. "Echizen. I supposed we can expect you to be playing for Seigaku then?"

She made a non-committal sound that was taken for agreement.

Fate really did not like her that day and therefore Mukahi found it necessary to impress upon them all his stupidity. "Then what are you doing here? Spying? Wait, you came with Atobe, does that make you his girlfriend?"

She choked on the Ponta she had scavenged from the mini fridge. "Why would I date this pompous bag of trash?"

"Ore-sama will never deign to date you, Rei!" Atobe sniffed.

"To 'deign,' Keigo, means you have to be better than me which is not true. Especially on the dating scene." She smirked. "You've been asked out by fan girls alone. Unlike you, I've had decent prospects." She turned back to Mukahi. "Anyway, I can't date him. He's my first cousin."

"I believe that means their mothers were sisters, Gakuto." Oshitari kindly condensed the information for his doubles partner as Shishido tried to keep his laughter to himself – and failed miserably.

Reiko sighed, tugged down her cap and gave up all hope for a much wanted nap. Who knew the dignified sons of well-known business men were so annoying and noisy?

* * *

"Rei-chan!" Her most cheerful aunt all but sang at the sight of her favorite niece. "How is it that you are here?"

Reiko tried to respond only to be cut off.

"Imouto-chan tells me that you had a most interesting dinner guest. Does this have to do with coming here?" She tsked teasingly. "I expected better from you, really. To only visit your family when you need to escape."

She gave up. "Iyada, baa-chan! It's nothing like that! We were just finishing a match…"

"And you went willingly into enemy territory to do that? Kanagawa is where Rikkaidai is located. Hah! I got one up on Rin-chan now!" Ryoko laughed at her niece's dumbstruck expression. "I'll see you at dinner, Reiko-chan!"

* * *

"Reiko-sama, Ryoko-sama asked me to see you to the parlor. The other guests are waiting for only you and Keigo-bocchama now." A maid stood at her door when she opened it.

_Shimatta._ Her baa-chan had truly anticipated her move. She'd planed to sneak into Kei's room to borrow some clothes rather than the blouse and skirt she'd be assigned but now… With a sigh, she trudged after the maid.

Once reaching the stairs, she ignored the maid's protests and proceeded with sliding down the banister. Passing Atobe on the way down, she kicked him hard on the shin with a smirking "Monkey King!"

A resounding "Brat!" followed her as she landed in the parlor, contrary to the maid's predictions, unharmed.

"Was that Keigo I heard?" A previously unnoticed figure voiced from hallway.

Oshitari, Shishido and Mukahi scrambled to their feet, greeting the man with a courteous "Atobe-san" as Reiko attempted to stifle her laughter: They had been replaying the scene in the car prior to that and the contrast was just too hilarious.

Entering from the dining hall's connecting door, Ryoko smiled. "Ah, anata."

Reiko grinned childishly at the sight of her uncle. "Yes, it was Monkey King, Keisuke-jii-san. I accidentally kicked him on the way down."

"Brat, Otou-san." Atobe limped into the room, the tennis regulars and Reiko rolling their eyes at the obvious exaggeration. Greetings done, he turned to Reiko, glaring. "I save you from the machinations of Fuji Syuusuke and have to deal with the sight my nemesis and this is how you thank me?"

She sighed. "I agree to your insane plan as long as I don't have to shop." She preempted the long ranting speech she knew was to come.

The 3 other Hyotei players stared. Did 1) Atobe just talk like a human being and; 2) she just shut him up with that?

"Oshitari, don't get me anything you won't let your imaginary imouto wear or we'll have a battle of tensais." She breezed past his confusion. "Kei will explain. Dinner anyone?"

"Did you miss us so much that you'd call so soon after coming back, Rei-chan?" Keisuke teased his niece.

Before she could answer, Ryoko cut in. "No, she was escaping Rinko-imouto's grasp and her Syuu-nii's."

"And I fell into yours." Nevertheless, she smiled at that. "I sense Kei's lost."

"Ore-sama is not lost. Ore-sama is merely conversing with Oshitari with regards to tennis practice tomorrow for doubles." Atobe haughtily announced.

Reiko gave him a skeptical look. "And who said he didn't require a fukubuchou? And stop it with the ore-sama-ing!"

"Ore-sama will use the phrase as much as ore-sama likes because the sight of Rikkai's fukubuchou put ore-sama in the mood." Atobe replied.

She stared up at the ceiling, a long suffering expression that said 'what did I do to deserve this' on, before replying. "I was meeting someone else. I didn't expect to see him either. The way you go on…"

"Crap, Reiko-san, wrong words!" Shishido muttered. "Oh, here we go,." Long experience told him what was to happen: a long speech (that from any lesser personage would be considered a rant) on why Sanada sucked and didn't deserve… whatever. He never listened. Only Kabaji did. And Jirou. If he were awake.

"…So unhygienic… Needs to et a haircut… Stop mooning... Stupid, being so des – " Atobe went on until Reiko kicked him. "Nani?"

"Kei, if you didn't notice, _no one_ is listening." She informed him.

Atobe glared at her. "Very well. Then which of the Troika were you meeting?"

"Inui-senpai asked me to run an errand. To pass some data to Yanagi-san." She tried to bluff her way out of it.

"If that were the case, why do you need to get away from your 'kaa-san and 'nii-san." Mukahi asked.

"Good question for once, Mukahi." Shishido sniped.

"And don't pretend there's been rumblings of you and Yanagi, please. He and Inui are as good as married…" Atobe interjected, ignoring the looks of disgust his company shot him. They weren't homophobic or anything; it was just the two data masters put together were just scary.

Ryoko smiled at her niece. "Truth, Rei-chan."

_Gomen, Oshitari, but I'll be depriving you of your doubles partner. _She looked straight at Atobe, already planning further revenge. "If I get to use the courts to play with a friend without supervision to finish a game."

Atobe only answered with a frosty nod.

"Finishing a match with Rikkai's equivalent of you." She muttered, bending to use her hair to hide the flush.

"Rikkaidai has no one to equal ore-sa – " Atobe stopped short. "You were playing a _singles _match with Rikkai's buchou? Your opponent in Nationals _Finals_ the last time?"

Reiko's further inclination of her head indicated her only response.

"Are you insane? You could be playing him again in Kantou this year. And probably Nationals as well! And Yanagi was there!" Atobe looked at her incredulously.

"Yanagi-san joined us when we postponed the match and decided to play doubles. The score, as it stands, is 6-all, 32-all."She curtly informed him. "Seiichi-san and I both went all out."

Oshitari found himself gaping in a most undignified manner. "You played against Yukimura Seiichi and you _both _went all out on _street courts._"

"Before anyone was out." She finished. "And it's not like we won't improve before the season is out. We'd have new moves by Kantou and Nationals. How else can I play you all the time?" The last was directed at Atobe.

"Nanjiroh and Ryoga actually let you?" Keisuke couldn't resist asking.

She shrugged. "Oyaji doesn't know yet. Anuie swore to kick Syuu-nii's arse on the courts today for not stopping me when he heard but 'nee-chan stopped _him_ from stopping me. Oyaji'll kill them both probably. Then 'nee-chan and 'kaa-san will kill him."

"The magazines are going to burn." Keisuke predicted. "So you'll be staying the night?" At her affirmative, he went on. "I have something you might want. Drop by the study later."

She smirked, nodding. "Ne, Kei. Didn't Mukahi-san owe you laps?" Ah… Sweet vengeance! She grinned as Mukahi began to squawk about tomorrow and how Shishido was supposed to run too.

"20 laps around the house, Mukahi. Shishido, 20 in the gym." Atobe calmly continued eating dessert.

"You know, when Tezuka-buchou assigns laps, last I recall, Kikumaru-senpai just yelps and then runs them."

Mukahi went out and started running in absolute silence – a miracle that even Oshitari had never managed to achieve.

* * *

"So Rei will play hostess beside me." Atobe sketched, roughly. "I'll ask Oshitari to get a dress and whatever you'd need. He knows what to get." He mentioned in an aside.

"And we're inviting?" Keisuke asked.

Atobe shrugged. "People of significance, their families… 'Kaa-san enjoys a big party."

"Significance equates to the whole Hyotei team?" Reiko asked, drawing out the RVSPed list for the last big party – the one on New Year's Eve – out and scanning through it.

"Au naturallement."

She didn't retort. "Jirou would want Marui-san… Nani? If you hate Rikkai so much, what's the name of their fukubuchou and Petenshi doing here?"

"The family business. By extension, the whole of Rikkai gets invited though they very seldom turn up completely." Keisuke explained for Atobe who had started sputtering at the mention of his archrival (besides Tezuka, who seldom caused such a large reaction. It does make one wonder why, really). "Since you're involved, we'd add your team as well."

"Should we get 'baa-san's secretary to block out the evening? Note it down as family evening or something similar?" She suggested. Ryoko helped Keisuke in the business. And while she did less than his workload, she was a busy woman, unlike other society wives who were mere trophies.

"A good idea, so nothing crops up. Keigo, stop acting like a child and help out." He ordered his son.

* * *

"So, décor in gold, mild greens and white." Reiko ran down the things they had decided. She had become unofficial secretary. "Floral arrangements will be seen to by jii-san. Kei will see to invites. Myself and jii-san to check (so he can't deliberately leave out Rikkai and damage business relations).Menu's mine and Kei's. The day itself. Briefings at 1. Set up beginning at 3. Split up at 4:30 – Kei, we do _not _need so much time to dress, really! Rebrief at 6. Guests arrival at 7, since they're always late."

"That's about it." Keisuke nodded. Taking an envelope from his table, he handed it to Reiko. "It arrived from America today at my office."

She grinned. "I gave Kev your office because I was in a rush and here, home or 'nee-chan's will give them ideas. Domo, Jii-san."

"Oyasumi, Rei-chan, Keigo." He replied as they left the office. The plan would definitely succeed and everyone would be very happy indeed.

* * *

**A/N: **Very Hyotei, no Rikkai/Seigaku and full of more cousinly stuff. I _love_ writing Atobe raving about how and why he dislikes Sanada so much, it's immensely entertaining. Strike that, writing pompous Atobe is _always _immensely entertaining. This one took longer simply because of procrastination (: The next one will be up by... mid next week? The current target's a chapter or two a week anyway. R&R! -iirse

_Last Edited: April 29, 2011_


	7. VI: Life in Seigaku

**A/N: cuteanimeXD14378: **Heh, the party is quite in the future, going with the whole cliche of money = big parties = long term planning :D On extending, my first 10 or so always are generally shorter, they'll get longer eventually (I hope!) **pps07: **Completing it is the aim after all! Tq for all the encouragement, faves and reviews. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 6**_** - Life in Seigaku**_

It was a beautiful day. The birds were singing; the sun was shining. The light breeze bore just the faintest scent of spring as fresh leaves rustled. It ought to have made anyone cheerful. Anyone _would _be.

That is, with the exception of the chibi by the name of Echizen Reiko.

Dragged out of bed by her most persistent cousin, she'd been forced to change into her uniform – which she thoroughly detested – and shovel down dry English breakfast. Half asleep, she was bundled into the limo before she could even register then protest to the choice of transport.

Unfortunately for the ears of one Atobe Keigo, she was making those protests now.

"Honestly Kei! The limo? You may not have noticed, but few people travel in a limo. My privacy is barely there already!" She ranted. "Now it'd be, 'Echizen, you're dating Atobe?' and when I answer you're my cousin, they'll get all chummy in the hopes of getting you. Fan girls!"

"We're here, Reiko-sama, Keigo-bocchama." The driver informed them just as the door opened. Grousing, Reiko stepped out, accepting her things from one of the many people in her cousins 'entourage.'

"Ore-sama will see you to the courts, Rei." Atobe announced.

Reiko walked ahead, calling over her shoulder. "Do what you want, Kei."

* * *

"These are the facilities of a _National _level team?" Atobe gaped. It was far less than he'd expected.

Reiko shrugged. "It works. And it's better than when Oyaji tried teaching me the Pinnacle of Perfection. That was really primitive."

"Ochibi-chan!"

Swearing, Reiko dashed behind Atobe. "Ohayo, Kikumaru-senpai. Where's Oishi-senpai?"

"Mou, you're so cold, ochibi!" Kikumaru exclaimed. "Oishi's meeting Tezuka, nya. They're coming soon. Fujiko was so disappointed you didn't come back for dinner! Nani? Hyotei's Atobe?"

Before Reiko could do introductions and preempt Atobe's 'be awed by ore-sama' speech, another pair of footsteps came up.

"Atobe. What's Hyotei doing in Seigaku?" Tezuka greeted, Oishi behind him.

"Oishi!" Kikumaru glomped Seigaku's mother hen. Reiko watched in amusement as the fukubuchou automatically turned red.

Staring at the two of them, Kikumaru came to the same conclusion Mukahi did the day before. Maybe the two were somehow related… "Nya? Ne, Ochibi, so you were meeting Atobe-san for a date yesterday? Mou, to abandon a senpai for your boyfriend!"

Atobe, arse that he was, had to add fuel to the fire. "It was most interesting, Rei-chan. But you could have told me if you did have something on."

Tezuka felt a migraine in the making. "Atobe. If you are doing bidding fond farewell to Echizen, please go. We have morning practice yet and… Fuji."

"Ohayo, Syuu-nii." Reiko greeted. She knew she was out of trouble until later at least. Fuji always waited for the best chance. With only half the team here, this definitely wasn't it.

"Fujiko!" Kikumaru glomped him and was pried off neatly in a span of a few seconds. The wonders of best friends.

"Ohayo, minna." Fuji greeted before turning frosty tones on Atobe. "Atobe. You are _dating _my imouto?"

Reiko wanted to strangle Fuji there and then but settled for throwing a tennis ball at his head (which he of course evaded), yelling 'who's your imouto! I have a name!' and sounding like Yuuta. Damn Syuu-nii, he _knew_ they were cousins! She was promptly ignored by all. They were too busy paying attention to the verbal spar.

"Do you have a problem with that?" Atobe haughtily stared at Fuji. Reiko cursed. _Damn Kei for playing along!_

_Damn Syuu-nii too!_ She swore as Fuji followed up with an open eyed stare. "Yes."

"We'll settle this on the courts then." Pissed frosty stare.

"My pleasure." Freaky open eyed stare.

"Enough! 50 laps now!" Tezuka yelled.

"Ja, Rei!" Atobe called as he left, having enjoyed the mess he left for his rival, cousin and cousin-in-law.

Reiko glared after him before turning on Fuji. "Which part of we're cousins, _first_ cousins, do you _not_ understand?"

Tezuka stumbled to the clubroom to get his aspirin as the siblings collapsed in laughter. Reiko couldn't stay angry when it was that good a prank.

* * *

Her day was going just fine, Reiko decided. A nap through English and Japanese – she was fluent enough to do both. A brief torture of math… which she had to make a point to study or Inui-senpai would force her into tuition with him while being a lab rat. Then a longer nap throughout Japanese History as her Syuu-nii adored the topic enough to tell her everything necessary ages ago. And now, food. It was lunch break.

Reaching for the bento she knew Ryoko-baa-san would have requested packed, she worked her way to the spot where she saw the regulars congregated.

Mind still fogged slightly by sleep, she forgot that lunch break was _the_ opportune time for Fuji to strike. In front of all the regulars, he'd have help in dragging out the truth from here. In addition, her chances of lying were slim, very slim. Something like zero to negative. Of course, it clean slipped her mind until tensai joined them, else where would the fun be?

She considered her options: try and sneak away? No, Syuu-nii was too sharp for that. She could try making a break for the ladies, but kami-sama knew Syuu-nii _could _easily pass off for a girl and get in as well (though everyone did not mention this to him of course) so that was out. But to be a sitting duck was out of the question. No Echizen _or _Takeuchi worth her salt went down without a fight.

Reiko stood, murmuring an excuse about needing the ladies then attempted to walk away at a sedate pace. Once safely asconded in a cubicle, she sighed in relief. Missing lunch would put her in a state, she knew, but escaping the interrogation seemed more vital now.

"Stop hiding, Rei-chan." The voice made her freeze. _What. The Freakin'. Hell. _Had Syuu-nii _really_ slipped into the girl's toilet? "You know you have to get this over and done with."

"I'm have a stomachache." She lied through her teeth.

He laughed. "If you did, you'd have run here." A pause. "I expect to see you back in 5 minutes."

She sighed as she heard the door close behind him. No one would question Fuji Syuusuke's reasons for being in the _girls_ toilet. Nope, they'd just chalk it up to his weirdness or be too afraid to ask. The teachers, if they asked, would probably get some elaborate tale about being concerned for her. _Bull. Shit._

With another sigh, she hauled herself out and headed back, comforting herself with the fact that she would at least get to eat.

* * *

Dragging her feet, she still made it back to their 'spot' in the allotted time. "Shoot, Syuu-nii. Get it over and done with." She glared at him as she settled back down, starting on her bento.

He cheerfully took up the offered bait. "Where were you yesterday?"

"At Kei's." She replied around a mouthful, giving the bento a meaningful look. It bore the Atobes' mark, definitely: understated elegance that screamed expense.

Fuji continued smiling. "But you left directly after practice. Hyotei didn't finish until rather late."

"And you know this…" She questioned, turning the tables on him.

The regulars turned from one to another, like following a table tennis ball across the 'court.'

"Oshitari was most kind to provide the answer to the questions I asked." He replied smoothly.

She swore. "Tensais. He's going to get it."

"Answer the question, Rei." Fuji opened his eyes, just slightly.

Reiko paled, ducking her head before anyone noticed. Anyone but Fuji that is. "Oshitari should have been able to tell you where he and Kei picked me up."

"He had been expressedly forbidden to tell. I expect you know." Damn, she did, she'd given that order herself, along with blackmail that Kei had provided her with.

She bit her lip. "With our… dinner guest courtesy of your lack of sense of time the other day. We were continuing, as you know we planned to."

"Stop speaking in code." He didn't bother to hide behind the smiling eyes now.

"Would you have me send everyone into a panic?" She retorted in English, in return.

"No, I see your point." He conceded in English as well, smiling once more, before switching back. "I assume that is why Nanji-san practically ordered me and Ryoga-san in a match which resulted in the burning of his questionable reading material?"

"That is the logical assumption to make." Reiko smiled, frostily – a smile she had plagiarized from Atobe and polished to a fine sheen.

"Mou, Fujiko, Ochibi! Talk in plain speech!" Kikumaru exclaimed, having got lost somewhere along the way.

Tezuka found himself with a migraine. Again. He had seen Yukimura seeing Echizen back the other day. 'Continuing'… seemed to indicate an ongoing thing. The least disturbing thing he could come up with was a tennis match. It was actually quite disturbing, on second thought. Seigaku and Rikkai's best playing against each other. And certainly panic-inducing for them.

"Fuji. Echizen. See me after the afternoon practice briefing." He ordered, gratefully taking the aspirin Oishi offered.

* * *

"25 laps. Non-regulars, practice your swings – Fuji and Echizen to supervise today. Regulars, Inui will delegate the mock-matches." Tezuka gave out.

Inui cleared his throat. "And the vastly improved Penal Tea waits…" He was cut off as everyone dashed off, leaving the 4 regulars behind. Exchanging a glance, the siblings sighed and followed after their captain's retreating back.

"I've drawn my own conclusions regarding this morning's conversation but I want the truth."

"Syuu-nii lost track of time the day I came back. Se – " She bit back the informality.

"Yukimura saw her back." Fuji filled in oh so helpfully.

Reiko glared. "We talked tennis and it resulted in his staying for dinner and our playing later, which was interrupted, so yesterday was a follow-up of sorts."

"You forgot the doubles part." Fuji reminded, smiling.

"Doubles." Tezuka repeated, no doubt remembering her near-disaster game from years ago.

Fuji's smile only widened. "Family policy. Rei-chan played against me and Yuuta. They won."

If Tezuka were anyone else, he'd have launched into panicked speech. Thankfully, he hadn't changed in that aspect. Instead, he settled for his usual phrase of, "Yudan sezu ni ikou."

Making her usual non-committal acknowledgement, Reiko walked out, Fuji on her heels, lips tightened ever so slightly in agitation.

* * *

In the past, it'd always been left to the better (upper class) non-regulars to supervise non-regular training. Inui would then come in at some point or another to check. Today's instructions, therefore, was a surprise. The two star players, other than their captain, to supervise. Murmurings were rife amongst them and only silenced when the two came out.

They knew they were in for it, even the freshmen – the handiwork of a single loudmouth named Horio, obviously. All it had taken was one new student to ask just why everyone seemed so nervous and the whole terrifying history of Fuji and Echizen was blaring with much embellishment on the role Horio himself played, as always.

Fuji was said to be terrifying sadistic and could do all sorts of things while still having that serene smile on, as though oblivious to whatever he had orchestrated. Echizen, on the other hand, was scathing with those who lagged behind and never bothered hiding her ire. And kami-sama help you if you pissed her off on PMS.

"Might I enquire as to why you're staring? Last I checked, the instruction was for you lot to practice swings, _not_ practice looking like a goldfish." Echizen projected, as predicted, scathingly.

Behind his smiling mask, Fuji's curiosity was suitably piqued. It had been a while since his imouto was this agitated. Moving down the line adjusting accordingly, he wasn't too surprised to hear Reiko adding to various practice amounts. She was best when pissed: harsh and unforgiving, forcing whoever she was helping to go beyond the limit.

And a stupid freshman, ignoring the nudges from around him had to challenge said authority.

"Add another 20 swings, you're doing it wrong." Her chilly voice carried.

Indignant, said freshman dropped his racquet. "Why? You are just a freshman as well; you have no right to order _me_ around. I myself have experience and my personal coach has no problem with my swings."

"Then your coach is lousy." She replied. Various others shivered at the drop in temperature. Reiko just watched him sputter. "If you think there's no problem, we'll play a game then. Syuu-nii, I'll leave this to you."

Whispers passed through the gathered non-regulars, some envious but mostly in pity and somewhat relief. An average Fuji was better than a pissed Reiko any day. The fool had no idea what he had gotten himself into.

It was only 3 minutes later when she'd cheerfully used Rikkai's most feared skill and shut off her opponent's senses before walking off the court. It was a move that, to their knowledge, only could be countered by opening the third door.

"Experience is something she has over you. She has the third door, the only one to break out of that technique she used on you." A sophomore helpfully told him.

"When Echizen gets that look on her face, _no one _argues with her unless they have a hope of equaling or beating her in a game or they have her respect. That is basically the regulars." Another provided more information. "It hasn't changed since middle school."

"As intriguing as my imouto's life is, I do believe you are supposed to be doing something…?" An open-eyed Fuji smiled at them.

"Fuji, I'm to relieve you. Echizen's talking to Ryuuzaki-sensei; it seems bad." Inui stopped him from wrecking havoc only to have the tensai break into a sprint. Turning to the trio, his glasses sparkled. "Now… where were we?"

* * *

"You heard me; I'm quitting and putting in for a transfer to either Hyotei or Rikkai." She said calmly. "I get along well enough with Kei and his friends; I'll have no problem with fangirls anyway. Being cousins is helpful."

"And _Rikkai_?" The coach demanded.

"We all ran into them the other day. I daresay I'll do fine there, even though I only know third-years." She shrugged.

"Rei…" Fuji's glare froze the room further.

She turned unflinchingly. "Admittedly, Rikkai _is_ a new consideration. But the competition in there is strong. Challenge is freely accepted without stigma. Hyotei'd be fine too. I can easily get the challenge I want without worrying because I know it's understood."

"This is regarding earlier." Fuji was equally unwavering.

Reiko shrugged. "It just brought to light various… concerns. I can afford Hyotei easily and I _will_ get in. You expect me to attend school here out of old loyalty, yet can't trust me to act with discretion? Gomen ne, but I won't stand for it. I'm not actually in anyway, this is just plain courtesy, I quit."

* * *

The whole team's reaction when they found out was no better. Fuji was already pissed. Oishi and Kaidou worried, Kikumaru and Momo just making noise in shock and devastation… Inui continuing counting probabilities. Tezuka was simply floored. Who would have thought?

* * *

**A/N:** Sorry this took a while, I spent the later part of holidays either shopping or hanging out with the clique - temptation, what can I say? Now school's started *headdesk* I'll try for fortnightly! Please review, it makes me hyper and hyper = finish homework faster = more time to write! -iirse

_Last Edited: April 29, 2011_


	8. VII: Clashing in More Ways than One

**A/N: **I'm kinda surprised at the response to the whole transfer idea... Didn't even anticipate it while I was writing. Threw my whole plotline out of the loop for a while, but I figured it out already. Kind of: Go with the flow! :D Hyotei will be coming in more, I _think._

**Bankotsu's Sexy Bunny Girl**: I wasn't expecting it either. It just came out and I just though, oh the hell with it, I'll just go with the flow. Yes, Rikkai does rock so much! **  
evil genus**: The switch schools bit, I didn't really anticipate myself. She was angry after all.  
She _is_ a 2nd year, but she's new as the rest of them. The only thing that the freshmen knew about her was what Horio said - and we all know how much he'd emphasize that they were former classmates. So with that particular silly freshman, I assumed that he made the assumption that as Reiko and Horio were former classmates, she is a freshman too.  
Hope that clears things up! I'll go back and edit the chapter to make that clearer. **  
yumi2482**: Thanks! I wasn't too sure if I should have ended it like that, glad to know someone liked it! **  
Crazy Hyper Lady**: Fuji-sadist! I should totally put in a scene later of Yukimura and Fuji being actively sadistic... *plots* Yes, the little freshie's in big trouble. That'd come in later.  
Yes, the transfer thing's rather sudden, but like I said, I didn't anticipate it either and it was rather heat-of-the-moment statement. I'll see how things go, I guess. Thanks for reviewing!  
**strawrawbeby**: I think it's the... 3rd? 4th? time I'm saying this. I didn't think of the transfer at all. The subconscious is amazing, srsly! I'd like her to go to Rikkai, the fluff'll be so fun! Or Hyotei to clash with Atobe all the time. But on the other hand, I don't want it to seem like she's running away - Don't want it to become a pattern or anything. It's a tough choice, I'm going with the flow for now, so you'll see where it ends up, I guess.  
Thanks for the headsup. I didn't notice since, well, I write it, I know what I mean. Lol, I know. Shall check over that when I go back to edit it.  
**underworldprince77**: Thanks! Yuki/Ryo is great and too neglected. But it has _Rikkai_. That explains it enough, ne? Thanks for the reivew!

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 7**_** - Clashing in More Ways than One**_

Seigaku's team morale was terrible that week, Ryuuzaki concluded. The loss of one of their star players had hit the regulars particularly hard: lackadaisical play (or particularly vicious play, in Fuji's case)… It wasn't getting any better and if they didn't recover soon, they wouldn't even be able to sniff a ticket to Nationals, much less winning. She had wrung out the whole story from Fuji.

To say that the tensai was furious was an understatement. He was dying to kick Tezuka's arse on the courts.

Yes, Tezuka had always let the team come first, but in doing that had insulted Echizen beyond compare. He had not-so-subtly insinuated that Reiko had taken the game to fulfill her personal wants without consideration. She knew it wasn't true, the girl had learnt team considerations before she left for the States and she had Hyotei's captain for a cousin. She had made sure no scouts were around before playing. While quitting and applying for transfer was a hasty move on her part, Ryuuzaki didn't blame her. Reiko was always hotheaded and reckless, just like her father.

But the problem resided more in where she went. In Hyotei or Rikkai, she could easily get into their tennis teams. Though she mostly knew third years, she could just as easily get into senior year. There was _nothing_ to hold her back. It wasn't a matter of if she got it, it was just where. She could only hope that Fuji managed to talk sense into her. Fast.

* * *

"Seigaku? Today?" To say Yukimura was surprised was an understatement. Yanagi seldom asked to be excused. "Oh very well, I was planning on heading that way myself. I'm sure Sanada can handle the rest for today."

Yanagi nodded in relief, heading off to inform their unlucky teammate and leaving Yukimura to ruminate.

He was indecisive; calling Reiko to ask if she was free seemed like a good idea but maybe not. He'd heard rumblings from Marui through Hyotei that Seigaku wasn't doing too well.

"'Mura, the brat's looking for you!" Speak of the devil, the bubblegum-blowing redhead popped his head into the classroom, the bubblegum popping neatly to punctuate.

"I. Am. Not. A. Brat." Fuming green eyes set in a mask of irritation topped by messy hair that, according to Niou, mimicked seaweed, Kirihara Akaya glared at his senpai as he entered a mere few seconds behind.

Even though he was a sophomore to Marui's senior, Kirihara still stood taller than the redhead. To his credit, Marui rolled violet eyes in response to the dark look that was leveled down upon him, "Yeah, whatever you say, seaweed-head." He grinned as Kirihara sputtered. "Ja, 'Mura!" With a mock-salute to Yukimura and a quick ruffle of Kirihara's hair, he was gone.

Yukimura sighed, why Marui, Niou and Kirihara always had to create trouble was a question he would like answered. He turned his attention to what many named his protégé. "Maa, maa, Aka-chan, you wanted something?"

Like any other easily distracted child (though kami-sama help you if you said that in his earshot and you weren't someone insanely strong), Kirihara lit up. "Yup, I heard you were going to Seigaku..."

"You mean you eavesdropped on Sanada and Renji. No, you're not coming." He sighed at the Devil's obsession with Seigaku.

If he was on any other team, Kirihara would have whined until he got his way. But this was _Rikkai _and _Yukimura_. He knew better. "I was told the principal wants to see you. Fukubuchou caught me." He said by way of explanation why he knew.

"I take it that you've been assigned punishment then." Yukimura rose, Kirihara tailing him. "Halve it, since you actually remembered _and _learnt not to whine, Aka-chan. Add another 25 for asking first though."

Kirihara's face had lit up before falling (his math wasn't _that_ poor!): Sanada had assigned him 50 laps. He had effectively no decrease. Yukimura laughed inwardly as he made his way to the principal's office. If this was short, it'd probably not eat up his entire lunch break…

* * *

The news that had awaited him had him reeling in surprise.

"_I beg your pardon?" He must have heard wrongly._

"_You heard just fine." The principal assured him. "Echizen Reiko, Princess of Tennis, wants to transfer from Seigaku to Rikkai. Her grades are exceptional and sports-wise, of course it is tennis. I see no reason to deny her, unless your team has objections."_

_Smiling at the bewildered look on Yukimura's face, the principal grinned, it was rare that one could catch the unruffled Yukimura off guard. "Take some time to talk it over with the team and let me know."_

_It was meant to be a dismissal but Yukimura had regained himself. "Sensei, could you send for them? Yanagi and I are not going to be at practice and lunch break is about over."_

That had resulted in the regulars gathered en masse at the clubroom in the middle of school hours.

"Having her will be a plus for us in Nationals – our chances of losing are nearly zero." Yanagi acknowledged.

"What does she think she's doing? Spying?" An enraged, near-Devil Kirihara demanded.

It had been that that had stopped Yukimura from telling the principal he had no objection. What _was_ her motive? She'd seemed perfectly content with Seigaku when they'd met up.

"So we'll turn it down?" Yukimura brought the discussion back to the issue.

Yanagi sighed. "I would love to see the doubles possibilities, Seiichi, but without knowing her motives, it would be better, ne?"

_Doubles…? _The four that usually took those slots exchanged curious glances. Last they heard the Princess was an exclusive singles player…

"Besides, if she is truly serious about transfers and not merely trying her luck to say... spy, she won't let it go at that." Sanada interjected.

"Holy shit, it spoke!" Kirihara gasped in mock horror and pretended to sputter a la Atobe – it was true, usually Yukimura spoke in such situations. He left the punishments and issuing of training to Sanada, which led to the fukubuchou's silence in these situations. _Every_one knew he'd go along with whatever that was agreed on.

"Brat, 'Mura asked you something." Niou promptly smacked his head, mussing the already mused seaweed hair further.

Kirihara blinked. "Nani?"

"Reject or accept, Aka-chan?" Yukimura ever so patiently repeated, wondering how on earth the green-eyed Devil managed to captain the team after they left.

"Reject?" Kirihara looked like a kid praying he got the right answer to a yes/no true/false question because he fell asleep during the relevant lesson.

Faint exasperation worked its way into his tone. "A definite answer please, Akaya."

"Reject." Kirihara replied, praying he would be right.

"Any objections?" A roomful of shook heads. "Then we should return to class, lunch break's almost over. Niou: that was not a suggestion."

A bleached head shook, "Buchou has no sense of humor. Hiroshi?" Teal eyes hid a plea for _some_ fun.

"No, we are returning to class, 'Haru." Yagyuu squashed all his hopes. "I have no intention of facing Yukimura's particular brand of humor."

Niou shuddered inwardly at the reminder of _that_. "Fine, but you owe me one, and I'm planning to collect."

* * *

"_Gomenasai, Echizen-san, but both Rikkai and Hyotei refused."_

She itched to find a certain tensai and pummel him. Rikkai was partially expected, they would suspect spying or something idiotic along those lines… (Away in Kanagawa, Kirihara sneezed and was forced out of his nap to answer a particular hard question in English class)

But _Hyotei. _Kei would _not_ have refused her, and Reiko knew that well. They had been close as children and only closer still after her return to Japan during middle school – they took care _not_ to lose touch that time! The only reason that he could've refused her was on blackmail, which led to tensais. Hyotei's Oshitari wouldn't – they had an agreement on that that obviously included blackmail. That left Fuji highest on the list.

She would bet even _Karupin_ that Fuji was behind it.

Her grades were fine. The only thing that could have hindered her was express objection from either tennis team, seeing how she had left it down as part of reason for transfer. It had made sense at the time: if she had just wanted public schooling, she could've done it in the States. No, coming back for schooling was for the challenge.

It was about time to call in a few express favors with the Atobe heir and undermine her Syuu-nii's blackmail – she did know Monkey King longer and had more on him that either cared to admit.

She fished in her pockets as she wandered down the corridor, subconsciously heading for the roof – she did so love the view from the top – and was promptly startled when she heard her voice called out.

Pulling out the phone, she picked up pace with hardened eyes, ignoring the feared gazes that averted upon seeing her. "Kei, we need to talk."

"As pleasant as your voice is, Echizen-chan, I'm not your cousin." An extremely familiar Kansai accented voice drawled.

Reflexively, her eyes narrowed. "Oshitari. Where's my moron of a cousin?"

"Avoiding you, quite obviously." The blunette on the other end sighed. "He apparently doesn't want to get in the crossfire of siblings. It didn't occur to him that I don't want to get in the crossfire between cousins."

"_Actually it did, but ore-sama has refereed yours and Kenya's matches so often…"_

"Atobe Keigo, you are a coward." Oshitari winced and hit speaker, not caring to have his ears suffering from frostbite alone. "You know as well as I do that I can easily double and _triple_ whatever blackmail my _anuie_ put up. I suggest you think about that. And pick up your own phone when next I call." She snapped the phone shut, temper coursing.

"Rei-chan."

"Syuu-nii, I won't discuss this. It isn't up for discussion." Reiko didn't quite care for his opinion right now.

"I'm sure. Nanji-san won't like this though. Rikkai's so out of the way." He settled into her favorite napping spot.

She swiveled, glared, "Rikkai was just an exaggeration, a blind shot if you will. Hyotei though. At worst, I can stay with Kei – isn't that every girl's dream?" She laughed mockingly.

"_Through the changing seasons…"_

She snapped the phone open sharply. "You changed your mind or do I have to humiliate you first?"

"I got the whole story, Rei. Transferring over that isn't worth it." Atobe talking like a human was enough to stun her into silence.,.

"I don't _care._ Will you agree or do I have to try Rikkai?" She was bluffing, and praying he would fall for it.

Atobe sighed. "Which part of _whole_ do you not understand? Listen to me. If you hate it so much, quit and play in other competitions – we'll enroll in more after Nationals. "

She made to interrupt but he cut her off before she started. "Listen. You know they don't stand a chance so whether you're there or here makes little difference. They might try to hope but it is the _truth. _They might hate to admit it but: It. Is. The. _Truth._ Look at it this way, stay there and rub it in their face that you not only can tolerate them: what they want is so near yet so far and _their entire fault_. Or come to Hyotei, play for me and make it look like you're easily bought and whatnot."

There was silence on both ends for a long time before Reiko took a breath. "I'll stay."

"I knew you'd see sense. You still have that match waiting you know."

"Ne, Kei, as much as this will blow up your head, you do match them in cunning when you aren't being an arse. Ja." Smiling in affection, she hung up to Fuji's expectant look. "I'm not transferring but I'm not joining the team either. I think you have practice waiting, _Syuu-nii_."

* * *

Yukimura had been surprised at the near hiss that Fuji had given when they'd run into each other. He'd asked for directions to where Reiko was from a cowering freshman who had shakily directed him to the roof.

"Reiko-san?" He cautiously enquired of the back of what was definitely a female in Seigaku uniform. Stepping from the semi-shadows threw the girl's features in stark relief.

Amber eyes blinked slightly sleepily. "Dare…?" Then blinked in recognition. "Yukimura-san. Anything wrong?"

"Seiichi," He absently corrected her. "I think I should be asking you that."

Reiko looked down slightly sheepish. "You mean the whole transfer thing? I got… angry, I guess. And quit." She clapped a hand over her mouth. _Should I have said that? But then again, I quit. It doesn't matter_.

"You quit." He repeated. "You, who probably are the only other person our age who lives and _breathes _tennis the way I do, quit."

"Hai…" She looked around, hoping for something distracting. "You couldn't have possibly made the trip here only to ask me _that_. Rikkai _and _Hyotei did turn me down after all."

"Hyotei too?" Yukimura was surprised. Hyotei had come in a close third the year before and was longing to clinch Nationals at least once before this team disintegrated.

She shrugged. "Kei was blackmailed by _Syuu-nii_, then talked sense into me. He could match anyone for vicious when pressed. But really, what are you doing here?"

"Renji asked for leave to come, apparently something to do with Inui."

"And you invited yourself along?" Reiko finished with a grin. "Just as well. I haven't played anyone our age in the whole week. Unless you count trashing that pathetic freshman who thought I shouldn't be overreaching myself."

"You really did quit." He repeated before recovering himself, despite the disbelief. "Aren't you going to ask why your application was declined?"

Reiko sighed. "Yes, I quit. Stop acting like the world's come to an end. I figured you probably had your reasons – thinking I was spying or something. But even if it is accepted, I won't transfer now. Kei talked sense into me."

She paused, thinking. "Speaking of Kei, I blackmailed him into letting us play at his place, unobserved: want to make use of that?"

* * *

"Keigo-bocchama!" The harried butler rushed up as soon as he stepped through the door.

"What might be so important that you cannot wait until ore-sama's rested ahn?" Atobe demanded, in his usual pompous tone. It had been draining, talking Reiko into staying. He had believed what he told her but blackmail had been a powerful motivator as well.

"Reiko-sama came over with an unknown personage and proceeded to make use of the tennis courts more than an hour ago. She said she had your permission…" The butler trailed off as Atobe just waved absently at him.

"It is fine; she has ore-sama's permission. Which court?" He asked, already making his way up the private stair to his room, which would actually be better described as a suite.

The butler was stunned for a moment before resuming his unfazed expression. "Court 2, I believe. Shall I have the other servants set up a table for your observation and inform Reiko-sama of your return?"

"No, its fine, I won't be viewing today." He replied dismissively. _So you quit Seigaku's team and play with Yukimura in the same day. No doubt Fuji will hear of it and then the whole team. What a way to rub it in. No doubt we're cousins, ne, Rei-chan?_

* * *

The aforementioned girl sneezed, missing the ball that bounced out of court. She turned her eyes to the sky and glared, cursing whoever who had made her sneeze.

"7 games to 6, 115 to 113. Game, set and match, all yours." She recited the formality with a disappointed sigh. "My luck is just terrible, to have sneezed at such a critical moment."

The blunette couldn't help but laugh. With that petulant look crossing her features… "You look like Akaya when he lost the first point to Renji, during his middle school freshman year." He managed to explain.

Her expression only persisted. "You mean the time when he got his arse kicked by Yanagi-san, yourself and Sanada-san?" At his nod, she continued, starting back into the mansion. "Ah, the one I heard so much about. That's where the whole 'I'll defeat the Three Demons of Rikkaidai' thing stemmed from."

Then they both broke out in laughter. Reiko's imitation of Kirihara had been way too close. "You could make a fortune in comedy just imitating people." Yukimura jokingly suggested as she led the way.

She quickly proved him right: standing in the shadowed doorway, she straightened haughtily. "Where is everyone? Ore-sama is appalled by your inefficiency."

Almost immediately, a maid came rushing out. "Keigo-bocchama, I apologize…" It was then the girl dared to look up into a mirthful pair of amber eyes. "Reiko-sama! You just scared the wits out of everyone!"

"Gomen, gomen." She apologized, not seeming the least bit guilty. "Seiichi-san just has to comment on my marvelous imitation skills." She waved in the direction of the smiling blunette. "Can you get us some drinks and maybe a snack or two, please? The match was _so_ exhausting."

That said, Reiko feigned collapse upon the nearest surface of the chair as the maid nodded friendly assent and scurried off.

"Ore-sama knew you couldn't resist my magnificence eventually, Rei." An all-too-familiar pompous voice called as (who else _but_) Atobe Keigo came up behind Yukimura.

Upon the appearance of the diva, Reiko jumped up from her mock-swoon and onto him, lecturing. "Kei... What have I said about Syuu-nii's blackmail? You know I can do better than that and you _still _listened to him? I don't care if you made sense and cunning – you suck!"

The last was emphasized by a rather painful yank on his hair.

"Keigo-bocchama, Reiko-sama, Yukimura-san, refreshments as you requested." The currently fairly more subservient maid interrupted the duo.

Grinning sheepishly, Reiko leapt to the ground lightly. "Gomen, Seiichi-san, for the neglect."

She reached for her favorite post-game chocolate delicacy to find it gone. And in the hands of one Atobe Keigo who found himself being glared at. "That's what you get for not accounting for ore-sama, brat."

"Monkey King," She returned, petulant look returned once more.

Sighing at her immaturity, he caved in and handed the delicacy over in their traditional manner: by feeding it to her. That had started back when they were children.

"'_Baa-chan!" An upset Reiko ran up to Ryoko. "Kei-chan took my chocolate! You said I could have chocolate after practice and 'kaa-chan agreed!"_

"_Maa, maa, Rei-chan, you can have another." A bemused Keisuke tried soothing his niece._

_She turned the infamous puppy dog eyes on them. "But it was the last one and Kei-chan ate it already."_

"_Technically, ore-sama _started_ eating it, chibi." A young, already narcissistic Atobe came in. Holding her chocolate._

_Ryoko sighed. "Kei, please, just this once? I'll make sure you two have enough next time."_

"_Promise?" Atobe asked, eagerly. 'Enough' in his vocabulary meant any amount he wanted._

"_Hai, hai. Now get to it, give it to Rei-chan before she starts crying." Ryoko told her only son. She knew that one thing males seldom ceased to fear was tears. _

_Snorting, Atobe thrust the delicacy in Reiko's direction. She only glared and opened her mouth. At Atobe's confused look, she explained. "When anuie steals my chocolate, he always feeds me. Or else I make a mess 'cause there's no plate." She looked up at Atobe. "Kei-chan is technically my 'nii-san too, ne, 'baa-chan?"_

_Ryoko reluctantly nodded. Her son was at stage of 'girls have cooties!' after all. _

_Atobe sighed and much to the amusement of both parents gently fed it to his 'baby cousin.' _

"Brat, be awed by ore-sama's generosity ahn."

"Monkey King." She grinned at the familiar exchange. It had been the same since then.

Yukimura had been about to intervene, both out of discomfort and fear (yes, _fear_) for his own skin, when they had resolved the matter altogether. He quickly changed the topic. "Atobe, my thanks for allowing the match."

"Professionally, ore-sama did it for Hyotei. It wouldn't have hurt if you two annihilated your teams." The narcissist sighed. "That can't be helped now. Personally, ore-sama's brat cousin would have gone to..."

"Ryoko-baa-chan and Keisuke-jii-san and gotten my way. As clichéd as this is, Kei," Reiko smirked at him. "You know you love me. Familial, of course. Anything else is just disgusting."

Yukimura found himself gaping like what Niou would have 'affectionately' called a fish out of water. "You are cousins?"

"First cousins, more precisely." Atobe filled in. "This brat's mother's ore-sama's aunt."

Reiko took one look, figured out what he had assumed, and proceeded to bang her head against the table. "Kami-sama! Why is it they always assumed I'm your girlfriend. I have better taste than that!"

The ensuing argument only brought laughter to the table.

* * *

Unnoticed by the duo, as blunette and... greenette?, said goodbye at the train station, teal eyes widened. "Just what the _heck_ is buchou doing?"

* * *

**A/N: **Guess who saw them! I personally like the whole flashback thing. Chibis are sooooo cute. Please R&R! -iirse

_Last Edited: April 29, 2011_


	9. VIII: Turning the Tables

**A/N: **I know I said it worked it out the last time, but well... the bunnies started flying around and then it was exams and I simply didn't have time ): I apologize for the VERY late update! But hey, I passed (with pretty colors too, among the top of my class) for the exams so that means... *drumroll please* more time to update in the hols! Which are starting really soon (:

**yumi2482: **I'm glad you liked the convo, it was so fun to write. Fluffy moments are just so cute, ne?**  
cuteanimeXD14378:** Tq! (: I had a lot of fun with it. Hope you enjoy this too.**  
strawrawbeby: **Aka-chan wa kawaii desu! *glomps Kirihara* Honestly, can you see her without tennis? It's like losing a limb or more! As for the rest, I think this chappie should clear it up. I wanted to drag it and torment people but I just didn't have it in me! Rather, I'm too impatient!**  
Crazy Hyper Lady:** Yup, cause of more trouble and the reason for this twist. Hope you enjoy it!**  
Viven:** Thanks! I hope you like this update and apologize for how slow it is (:**  
aCANofJUICE:** What's a fic without plot? I hope mine has _some_ at least. Happy to note that it was surprising. Hopefully this takes you by surprise too.**  
Silvergem88: **Thanks for the heads up. I changed it to the way it should be a while back (: I'm angling for some doubles eventually so hopefully I can fulfill those expectations!

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 8**_** - Turning the Tables**_

Cerulean eyes snapped open, flashing dangerously. The honey-haired tensai stalked down the hall and walked into last room on the left without preamble.

Honey eyes met blue, calm with a hint of irritance and amusement.

Silence reigned before the intruder spoke. "What is this I heard about you meeting up with our greatest rival?"

A dark eyebrow was raised perfectly. "I fail to see why that is of any concern to you. I am no longer involved in the team." Rising from her position on the bed, the green-haired girl walked to the door and opened it. "I require my privacy."

A seething Fuji Syuusuke stalked out of the door, completely stumped. She had not denied it, his source had been true.

Back in his room, Fuji felt like uncharacteristically banging his head against the wall. He had no clue what to do. Letting her change schools went completely against his overprotective sibling complex. He'd been unable to stop Yuuta all those years ago and he was determined for history to _not_ repeat itself.

He covered it up with the excuse of the team, of course, but had expected her to see through that.

Frustrated, he stalked to the window overlooking the driveway only to see her walk out and slide into a car that screamed wealth. He swore softly under his breath. _Damn Atobe._

* * *

While a furious tensai fumed over meddling Atobes, the Princess was turning over the puzzle of just _how_ he had found out. The culprit to that crime, in contrast, was simply cheerfully whistled his way to weekend practice, shit eating smirk firmly in place.

That smirk only widened when a familiar presence fell in step beside him. "You seem highly amused today, 'Haru."

_Like duh._ Niou thought to himself. Leave it to Yagyuu to state the obvious. He couldn't decide whether to glomp the Gentleman or slug him, and so settled for smirking even more. "Oh _Hiro-chan_, you have _no _idea what I saw this weekend!"

Yagyuu twitched at the nickname, despite knowing it was in jest. "Do tell, since you would probably burst from excitement like Akaya otherwise."

"I saw 'Mura with Echizen-chan yesterday at the train station. They were discussing a match. _Their_ match." Then Yagyuu's comparison hit home through his excited haze. "I am _not_ like that seaweed brat!" He yelled.

"I'm not a brat!" An annoyed retort travelled over from the courts. Apparently, Kirihara had already arrived and heard him. "You're so dead if you're playing me later, senpai!"

The pair only exchanged a look and headed to change. "I'm hoping you are not planning to mention this to buchou, 'Haru."

Niou shot him an injured look that was marred by the smirk he still wore. "Do you think that little of me, Hiroshi? I don't intend to court death."

"What did you do with the information then?" Yagyuu sighed out the question, knowing his partner wouldn't rest till he got to spill all the details.

"I told Fuji." Niou stated matter-of-factly and smirked in satisfaction when the brunette's head snapped around to stare at him through impenetrable lenses.

It took Yagyuu a long moment to recompose himself. "Good luck then, 'Haru." At his teammate's questioning look, he explained. "If Echizen does tell 'Mura, that's two sadists on your tail."

He let an uncharacteristic smirk spread as he walked out of the now-silent clubroom, leaving a shocked Niou behind. _He. Was. So. Dead._

* * *

The reason for his eventual death, however, wasn't even thinking about him. Reiko had taken the transport her cousin offered over to his place, set on getting her way. Cunning be damned, was her mindset.

The aforementioned cousin though, was being difficult."I told you before. Stay and rub it in their face, it's more effective!"

"You're just scared of _Syuu-nii_'s blackmail." She retorted, tossing a pillow at the back of his head from where she sat.

He turned to glare but was cut off before he could say anything. "I'm sick of it! I'm no longer in the team but he keeps acting like I am. It's so… Ugh! I want to play who I want without worrying about people knowing. You know I know my limits! Heck, next thing you know, I can't play with _you_ even."

Atobe made the fatal mistake of looking his cousin in the eye. She'd pulled the infamous Takeuchi trick. It was the oldest trick in the book but never failed. Amber eyes glittered slightly, lip trembling, all seemingly defeated. He knew if he gave in, it'd be gone in a moment. At least his mind knew, but instinct demanded he wipe that look off his baby cousin's face.

Said baby cousin was maintaining the charade easily, feeling slightly guilty but Kei had always been easier to convince than Fuji and it was obvious who she was closer to. She looked up 'sadly' when Atobe sighed, letting happiness flood through at his words. "Fine, Ore-sama will tell them I've changed my mind. You _can_ join Hyotei but I want you in second year, taking what third year classes you can."

"Domo, Kei-nii-chan!" She jumped up, flying across the room to glomp him a la Kikumaru/Mukahi.

Reiko smirked as he stumbled slightly at the surprising name. She hadn't called him that since they were children. "Whatever, chibi." He deliberately ruffled her hair earning himself a glare as he set her down. "Let's get some food and let 'kaa-san know what's going on before heading to school. We'll start with the paperwork on my end first."

* * *

They stood in the principal's office in Seigaku a week later. Reiko had insisted on a week to give them false hope and rattle their district games. Atobe thought his cousin was over doing things but then one thing he'd learnt over the years was never to disagree with a pissed off Takeuchi female. His mother, his aunt, his cousin… Everyone gave in when they were angry – especially if an effective kick could have them whimpering in the dirt.

"We are sorry to lose you, Echizen-san." The principal offered his hand while trying to avoid sending glares at the Atobe heir standing the background. He'd no doubt that her cousin was the reason for her transfer, Reiko deduced from his occasional hard glances towards the lounging diva.

She accepted the handshake politely but made it a telling insincere one. "I'm not sorry to go." Reiko replied bluntly. "And I'll appreciate it if you stop glaring at my cousin. If you do wish to know the reason for my leaving, I'm sure your tennis team captain would be more than happy to inform you."

Smirking she picked up the file with the necessary documents and bowed sarcastically, Atobe following her with a decidedly bored expression.

That is, until they ran into Fuji in the hallway.

"Atobe, you seem to be developing a fetish for coming to Seigaku." The tensai greeted, malice clearly written. Piercing blue eyes narrowed further when he saw that Reiko was dressed in plain clothes though it was a school day and all she carried was a file. "What's that, Rei-chan?"

Amber eyes narrowed in return. "That is absolutely none of your business, Syuu-nii. On second thought, you can play messenger boy then. I'm leaving."

She turned and walked down the corridor rapidly leaving a shell-shocked Fuji in her wake, and a satisfied Atobe on her tail.

Reiko kept on the calm dignified façade on until they were safely ensconced behind the tinted windows of the limousine before sinking into the seat. The cousins remained silent in one another's company, Atobe knowing better than to break it: Reiko would once she'd organized her thoughts into some sense.

For that, he was surprised when she asked meekly. "Did I do the right thing, 'nii-chan?"

He blinked, stunned. She hardly called him that anymore. It was a nickname belonging to the past when they were children running around innocent of everything. When everything was decided by a game of tennis and a 'big problem' could be resolved by just running to their parents. He had little clue of how to react now. "Even if it was the wrong thing, you wouldn't have listened to me, would you have, chibi?"

"I. Am. Not. Short." She glared harder when he tugged her hair lightly.

"Now there's the Rei that I know." Atobe smirked; satisfied that she was a bit more like herself. He was not a counselor damn it! "By the way, you being tall would be like Rikkai's Demon not being a seaweed-headed brat."

She smacked him halfheartedly but the mention of Rikkai had downed her spirits again. "I feel bad taking it out on Syuu-nii but he's acting for the team, that's the way he says everything. It is like the team is more important than me and he calls me his 'imouto-chan.'"

Atobe twitched at the name. She was more his imouto than Fuji's, damn it!

"I think it might be a cover for concern but it's too stifling and unbearable. I understand why Yuuta-nii had to transfer now. For him, it was the stifling expectations. For me, it's the stifling protection: be it for my good or for the team's." She sighed. "I'm just so confused. Is it right? I hurt Syuu-nii, I know that, but he was hurting me. Is that fair? I don't know, 'nii-chan."

Atobe was about to open his mouth and attempt comfort when he realized she'd drifted off, the stress of the past week having taken its toll on her. He himself let out a sigh of relief, glad he didn't need to try and be a psychologist. He directed the driver towards Ryoga's house. Reiko could probably use some female advice without the presence of her over-protective brothers.

* * *

Reiko awoke to a semi-familiar room. Blinking slowly to situate herself, she got up just as the door opened. "Rei-chan, you're awake! Just in time for dinner too!" Yumiko bustled in, rummaging in the dresser to pass her a hairbrush.

"How did I get here?" She blinked as she began to work out the tangles in her longish dark hair.

Yumiko laughed, a sound that the younger girl remembered her brother going on and on about when he had been dating the woman that became his wife. He still hadn't stopped, just… abated somewhat. "Atobe dropped you off, gave me and long story cut short and said he thought I'd serve as a better psychologist than he would. That is fairly true."

"Stupid Kei." Reiko threw down the hairbrush on the bed with a decisive pout, swearing that her cousin was going to get it in the next game they played.

"I won't say he's stupid. He just knows his weaknesses and is willing to admit them." Yumiko replied, reaching over to tie the greenette's hair.

The younger girl snorted. "Kei admitting his weakness openly will be the day the sky crashes down, 'nee-chan. But I'll concede that I can see his point. I won't be able to talk to 'kaa-san at home, so coming here is logical."

Yumiko arched a delicate eyebrow but resisted asking for now: Reiko would talk when she felt comfortable. "Ryoga's out overnight on business so you have me to yourself. But that's for later, let's get some dinner."

It wasn't till Yumiko brought out desert that Reiko finally broached the topic. They had started out with the usual checkup on various topics, delicately avoiding a few: namely Fuji, as well as Reiko's 'love life' until they lapsed into silence.

"You remember that game when I had to play Syuu-nii and Yuuta-nii for the court when I came back?" She asked.

It was rhetorical of course, but Yumiko answered all the same. "The one you played against Yukimura-san?"

It didn't go unnoticed by the brunette that Reiko blushed ever so slightly but she left it off for now. That could come in later after she got the whole story. "We met up that day when I stayed over at Kei's. We were supposed to finish the game but it dragged so we put it for another time…"

"And Syuusuke got wind of the whole story." Yumiko interjected.

Reiko nodded, glad for her 'nee-chan's insightfulness. "He forced it out of me the next day, thinking it was rather fishy. He did it in front of the whole team and though we spoke indirectly, somehow Tezuka put two and two together and confronted us on it as though I was some incompetent person who didn't understand the meaning of _team_.

"I quit after a far more incompetent first-year challenged me to a match. Of course, I wiped the court with his arse first. Then I put in for a transfer but Rikkai rejected it – it as just a wild shot anyway – and so did Hyotei."

"Syuusuke meddled, of course." The observation was obvious, seeing how she knew her younger brother.

"He blackmailed Kei, who tried to save his skin on both ends – seeing how we both had blackmail on him and mine's more substantial – by using his cunning on me." Here Reiko shook her head, knowing how caught between a rock and a hard place her cousin had been then. "He got me to agree to stay so Syuu-nii couldn't blackmail him anymore and used some twisted reasoning to make staying and keeping out of school tennis look good.

"It worked too. Until I met Seiichi-san in school and we went over to Kei's place to play. And somehow Syuu-nii got wind of it and called me out on it as though I was betraying the team again." She shrugged helplessly. "I snapped, I called Kei to send a ride and went over to smack sense into his head until he would agree. I got him to agree to wait a week before finishing the arrangements and we ran into Syuu-nii on the way out from filing the necessary papers today."

Yumiko looked at the now-silent girl before her, knowing she needed to prod. "Then what's the problem? You've gotten your way; you're free to play as you will. Hyotei will not restrain you that is certain. Atobe himself goes to Rikkai to challenge their vice-captain, I believe."

"Because I _know_ I hurt Syuu-nii." Reiko had picked up her spoon to fiddle with and now gripped it unconsciously. "I know I did, but that over-protection, whether it was for the team or for me was driving me insane. Had I given in, I know the team protection would still be the same. But is it right and fair that I hurt Syuu-nii just because he was hurting me? I'm so confused, 'nee-chan."

She dropped the spoon back down, eyes hidden by her hair, an air of defeat around her. It was completely unlike her and unnerved Yumiko.

"Ryoga would kill Syuusuke for putting you in such a state." She stated and earned a weak laugh from Reiko. Pleased, she continued. "Talk to him, Rei-chan. It'll clear up the air between you two and you'll feel better. At least the animosity would be less the next time I drop by."

Yumiko laughed. "It is almost like history repeating itself. It happened once with Yuuta and now it happens again."

"And I thought the same." Reiko replied, slightly more at peace now that everything had been said and she had a solution to consider. "As they say, great minds think alike."

They both laughed. Reiko more comfortable now she had let it out and Yumiko because she sensed it would be alright in the end – the way it had been alright with Yuuta and Syuusuke.

Although knowing these two stubborn people, it _might_ very well take longer than expected.

* * *

**A/N: **So I guess I finally cleared up whether she's going to transfer or not. No, I don't intend to change it again. Twisting it too many times makes it get old. I hope I didn't kill anyone with boredom with the whole summarization of what's gone on so far towards the end of the chapter! It just came out. Yes, you may look forward to a Syuu/Rei confrontation in the future but as hinted it would take _a while_ as they are both stubborn blockheads. R&R! -iirse

_Last Edited: April 29, 2011_


	10. IX: Hyotei Princesses

**A/N: **Meh, so this is the last update I'll have until after 26th Nov (i.e. early Dec). Sickening but yeah. Exams. Same reason why it took so long to get this one out. I think I've ranted enough about this. Enjoy!

**PiaTricia23, Thrill-Pair-All-The-Way, I heart MANGA and ANIME, a.k.373,** **Crazy Hyper Lady****: **Thankkkkks for the pretty reviews :D I'm kinda slow, I know. It's all exams' fault! Enjoy :P**  
****Ice-creamy-life: **Glad you likey :D Sorry to disappoint but I'm sticking with Hyotei now. This fic at least is not gonna have a Rikkai!Fem!Ryo. I don't know about any other bunnies that would pop up after my exams. But as it is, I hope you'd give this a try (:**  
****-StreiterDestinyMiseki-: **The whole blushing thing... well, in part foreshadowing, but then again, she _is_ new to such things and I think I'd know that if it's _new_ and all, it doesn't matter if you like the person or not, you'd blush. Or at least I did xD I've been extrapolating Syuusuke's behavior off how he tends to act (from my memory) with regard to Yuuta, so no, I haven't considered that idea yet. I usually go with instinct, much like how the whole transferring of school's came up, so whether it happens or not depends, I guess! And yes, Atobe has a pretty interesting role later and a sorta side-story of his own, I _think_. Like I said, instinct again!**  
**

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 9_ - Hyotei Princesses_**

In one of the many study alcoves that littered the Hyotei campus, Echizen Reiko stared out at the tennis courts even as the non-regulars trained. She supposed she should be there training them but really, that was such a chore. Once again, she wondered why she let her cousin talk her out of going to watch districts and sighed, oblivious to her surroundings.

"Reiko-chan!" A girlish squeal was all the warning Reiko got before the walking whirlwind that was Nakamura Misaki bounced up to her.

"Nakamura-senpai." She acknowledged, knowing that the formality would only irk Misaki, before turning back to the courts.

And she was spun back around and forced down on the window seat. "I'd think you besotted and missing Atobe if I didn't know better." Misaki teased.

Reiko's nose wrinkled. "Monkey King? Not even if you paid me, and we weren't related! Why are you here anyway?"

"Your cousin dearest called." Misaki was bouncing in her seat. "Ask me why!" At Reiko's deadpan expression, she deflated, if only to bounce back full force. "They took distracts!"

Amber eyes rolled. "Che. It would have been more shocking if they lost." She watched her senpai deflate again. "But at least it means good food tonight at Kei's."

Misaki cheered up at that, continuing to go on about what she wanted and other off tangents from there, requiring Reiko to nod absently at intervals only and giving her time to muse over her 'new life.'

It was odd, entering Hyotei in the later part of the term. But her names had smoothed her road much. Echizen Rinko nee Takeuchi was from old money and a highly respected and sought after lawyer. Add to the fact that Reiko's father was, to the public, a mystery-cum-legend in their tennis obsessed school… And the fact that she was essentially Atobe's 'imouto.' Plus the Princess of the circuit… It was perhaps easier to say that her reputation preceded her. So it didn't surprise many – if any at all – that she had to 'hold court' and when it came down to it, it was with a small number of close friends. The Regulars – namely Oshitari, Ohtori, a sleepy Jiroh and, of course, Atobe – were obvious picks enough. But aside from them, she had other friends that were more to her taste than her 'friends' in Seigaku like Horio and Osakada. Nakamura Misaki was one of them: Being one of the few girls that called the Regulars friends rather than decry them or squeal over them, she and Reiko had hit it off well, for all that Misaki was 2 years her senior.

Life in Hyotei, Reiko decided, was good. The tennis had a bite to it. Lessons were a touch better than Seigaku. And Keigo didn't hover like Syuusuke did – that was, in particular, one point she enjoyed. She had yet to speak to her anuie, choosing to spend more time at Keigo's and making excuses for herself.

Spending her weekdays at the Atobe home instead gave her free range over who called her and what she did without fear of over-protectiveness. Keigo would step in if he felt it was necessary, but not at every turn; such was his nature. He had 'better things to do' and trusted his own blood to have similar levels of prowess – his words, not hers. It was an amazing respite from her immediate family – namely the males – and led to her friendships working out more normally.

Or as normal as they'd get, she reflected, even as her phone buzzed with a text message.

_How were districts?_

"Who is it that has you smiling so sweet, Reiko-chan?" Misaki pounced, snatching the phone. "Oh! _Senpai says we won. I don't need to ask if you won, right? 6-0 all?_ Rikkai? Who from Rikkai!"

Reiko snatched back her phone and pressed send even as Misaki continued to pester her to no avail. The sole Echizen-Takeuchi daughter refused to think about romance and Misaki couldn't help but wonder.

_Need you ask? I presume we'll see you at Kantou?_

Reiko couldn't help but giggle. The answer was obvious.

_Need _you_ ask? Let me guess, your adri's rushing and you hardly needed it._

The reply made her smile. It was something she would have said herself, after all. _Needless to say. Districts are boring. I need a challenge._

_I think I'm rubbing off you._

She had hardly pressed send when noise entered her alcove. "I still don't get why we went for districts, Yuu~shi!" Mukahi's voice rang out, full-out whine.

"Because it would be moral blow to prefectural matches." Reiko answered before the tensai did. "Yes, the non-regulars could have done the job but not well enough to strike fear."

She missed the grateful look Oshitari threw her as Atobe's too-smug face caught her attention. "You look too happy, Rei-chan."

"We get a fantastic dinner tonight. Should I be unhappy, Kei-nii-chan?" She gave him an overly sugared look. "Misaki-senpai was just bugging me about dinner. I'm so excited now! You won't let us down, would you?"

Oshitari choked on a laugh at Reiko's blatant acting. One soft spot Atobe had outside family was Nakamura Misaki. They were 'just friends' but Reiko and he had long agreed something would come of it someday. Unless Atobe was like himself and Mukahi, of course – but Oshitari suspected Atobe would go both ways in that case.

Said heiress had glomped Atobe, nattering on food until he threatened to pass her to Kabaji and the two girls flanked him, continuing their endless chatter as the team exited the room.

* * *

In Hyotei briefly to pick up paperwork from one of this father's associates, Yagyuu Hiroshi was surprised to hear a loud medley of voices approaching. Surely if they were not at club activities, most people would have returned home already, not traipsing the corridors. To his surprise, he saw the self-proclaimed King of Hyotei, beleaguered expression on his face, flanked by two girls. He nearly didn't recognize Echizen who'd left her hair loose and forgone the usual cap and was properly attired in a tailored uniform. The other girl, he recognized for some heiress as well, with her long hair braided to a side, minimal expensive jewelry sparkling.

His eyebrows nigh reached his hairline when he realized the rest of the tennis team regulars trailing behind them in much the same condition as his team. They'd played districts too, apparently.

The fact that the Princess wasn't similarly attired made him wonder: was she a trump card or simply not involved? Either way, it'd seem that he'd best warn Yanagi to keep an eye out for Hyotei as much as Seigaku this season.

* * *

Having fulfilled her role as 'young mistress of the house' by ordering the servants to show the team to the showers and provide them with anything necessary then load them into cars to see them home, Reiko had disappeared to shower herself. Dinner had been a messy affair and she was eternally grateful they were in the informal (child friendly) dining room when the food fight had broken out. Now clad in a fluffy white bathrobe, she flicked through the immense wardrobe of her cousin's for something to wear – she had a preference for huge shirts to wear to sleep and Keigo never complained unless he had a girlfriend at that point in time.

Grinning when she found the shirt she'd printed him a few years back, she tugged it on before slipping on a silkier over robe, the sheer material of which made the design clear for her now-entering cousin.

"Rei… Stop raiding my closet!" The tick on his forehead grew at her laugh. She knew his sniping was due to the shirt, not the act itself.

"Monkey King." She teased, heading for the door. "We've been through this for years! Besides, I love this shirt."

He glared as she twirled out of the door. A rich purple hued shirt, it was printed with a caricature of them a few years back at the expense of his dignity. And it had been a gift for his sixteenth birthday. Reiko always enjoyed rubbing it in that she'd beat him and shaved off his hair.

By the gods, the wig _itched_ for _months_!

But if one thing could be said, his baby cousin was flourishing as much as she could. And she kept smiling – even if it was at her phone. He personally suspected Rikkaidai's captain.

Maybe Reiko would like to come along the next time he chose to antagonize Sanada…

* * *

Back in her room, the girls were having a rather unconventional slumber party. Misaki flicked through Reiko's clothes even as the aforementioned girl contented herself by sprawling on the huge bed, Karupin nestled up to her, hand phone in one hand and tennis magazine in the other.

"Echizen Reiko, your wardrobe appalls me!" Misaki suddenly proclaimed. "Your uniform is impeccable – Keigo's doing, no doubt – but the rest is all _tennis!_"

At that, she was rudely interrupted by a very un-Reiko-like squeal as the younger girl became fixated on a part of the magazine and began texting rapidly.

_The racquet I've been waiting for is out! I'm so going to prove you're mada mada dramatically with it!_

Misaki snatched the magazine, sighed at the technicalities of it and all and proceeded to lecture Reiko. "You know, if you wore a girly outfit, you'll win even more. The boys would knock themselves out!"

"That's not the point in playing, senpai!" Reiko rolled her eyes, flopping back. "Kei'd be immune anyway. Unless it's you!" She grinned at the blush that suffused Misaki's face. _Wait till Yuushi hears of this_, she thought evilly.

Then she was forced to duct as her elder swatted her with the magazine. "I don't see Keigo that way, Reiko! We grew up together since he moved here! He's a known narcissist and being 'perfect' would want a 'perfect' girl anyway. Thank the gods it isn't me!"

"Mada mada." She flapped a hand at the brunette, distracted by her phone buzzing. "Echizen." She picked up the call.

"So your racquet means I can't win anymore." A teasing gentle voice greeted her.

She grinned, ignoring the curious look on Misaki's face. "Yup! I'm going to be awesome with it that you're going to be even more mada mada."

"So you've said. But what if I told you I already have it?" He teased. "Let's see, grip that fits perfectly in your hand, frame in black splashed with gold, perfect tension…"

"No fair!" She burst out, then realized she had fall for the bait and rolled over to bury her face into a pillow. "I hate you."

Misaki couldn't try to eavesdrop on the reply as it was heavily muffled but Reiko's reply made it clear enough."Oh yuck. No way in hell! No offense, but what the hell? Where did that come from? …No, I don't love you! Ick! You have cooties, Seiichi-san!"

She snapped the phone shut with a "bye" shortly after, and buried her face into her pillow and had a mental freak out, consisted of calling him as many nasty names as possible.

That is, until Misaki's voice permeated her consciousness.

"So…" Misaki's voice brought her back to reality and an oh-shit expression took over. She'd forgotten Misaki was in the room. "You yell at Seigaku's captain, live with Hyotei's and flirt with Rikkai's?"

"Seiichi-san and I are friends, damn it!" She felt like killing someone. "Friends!"

Many protests later, Reiko had drifted off to sleep, tired of arguing. A half asleep Misaki mumbled one last "whatever you say, liar" before drifting off herself.

* * *

**A/N:** I typically don't like creating OCs, but I just felt that she would need some female friend or other. It's a girl thing, I swear. I've seen fics where we have someone's sister or other, or in Seigaku fics, simply Sakuno and Tomoka, but they don't seem to work, I guess. Misaki's sorta based off my sister as well as one of my best friends. Insanely girly enough to provide some crack, and she sounds amazingly like a bimbo right now in my head. I'll probably try to give her some depth later though, so bear with me. In the mean time, REVIEW! and I'll see ya in December after the godawful exams are over :P -iirse

_Editted: 15th March 2011_


	11. X: Our Yearly Pilgrimage

**A/N: **HIII! Please don't kill me for taking so long! Freedom drove me insane. Then somehow my writing style just went on crack and _everything_ I wrote was fit to be thrown out of the window. 'Backspace' was thoroughly abused, as was my dustbin that became chockful of crumpled balls of paper. So uh, I took a break from writing AFWI for a bit, then came back to it after my results came out. My pretty pretty results :D They inspired me to go back to writing again because with the U coming up, well, writing _is_ what I want to do next time! So... Enjoy! And R&R please! -iirse**  
**

**Zwolftd:** I do so love writing the childhood snippets! They're so cute and fun to write! As well as the crack. I hope you enjoy the more insane bits of this coming chapter (:**  
Crazy Hyper Lady:** "Denial's not the only river in Egypt"?**  
Lascka: **Happy that you enjoyed it! Yes, Kevin would come in later. As to whether he's a rival or not, I'm not too sure just yet. Sometimes, the characters write themselves and yeah... Hehe. It's a possibility to consider, though. Thanks!**  
harlequin320, Kakita101, smartgirl28, BlackAngelRose23, cultofblood: **Thanks for the reviews (: I hope this chapter (and the subsequent one) makes up for the wait, which I again apologize for!**  
Anime Alpha 14: **No Seii-Rei romance just yet, but it's in the offing and much nearer than Fuji-Reiko reconciliation :D I can't wait to write their fluffy parts too! **  
aaa: **Yay! I got the 'cute-and-adorable' effect I was going for :D Her reconciliation with Fuji's in the offing, no worries. They'll make up eventually simply 'cuz Fuji's one of my favorite characters, no matter how much of an ass I make him out to be here!**  
Reality's Oxymoron:** Thanks and I'm glad you likey! It's going to be fluff and roses for the next few bits, is all I'm going to say!

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 10 – **_**Our Yearly Pilgrimage**_

A week after Districts, none of the Hyotei Regulars were too surprised when an optional training day trip was announced by their captain, save said captain's cousin and the team's assistant (student) coach.

"Kei, would Sakaki-sensei approve?" She frowned down at her calendar. "It's not on the schedule." While she did manage the specifics of their training, the general outline _was_ set by the coach himself, and she didn't think it right to just dismiss the planning for her cousin's whim.

Although she was admittedly not truly that respectful, given how Sakaki had given up on briefing her with Keigo in the mornings – her brain absorbing information at that time was like a net trying to hold water (i.e. she was asleep on her feet). Instead, Hyotei's tennis coach had taken to just giving her the calendar, with the necessary details written down. Atobe hadn't bothered too much about it, knowing that his cousin would probably find some time to read it… Like during her English class – before she fell asleep, perhaps?

It hadn't posed a problem until now.

Thankfully, Ohtori managed to intervene before the cousins butt heads. It happened once, and it wasn't a blissful occurrence that the Regulars wanted to relive. Hell, the mere memory _hurt_.

"Ano, Reiko-san?" Ohtori offered, ever so politely, his person for her glare to be leveled upon. "I think Sakaki-sensei left a slot open in this week's schedule so we can make up for it. Atobe-buchou's trip has become sort of a yearly routine already."

Atobe was met by an arched eyebrow from his 'baby' cousin. Valiantly, he sought to ignore its implication of promised interrogation, even as he turned his attention back to the team. "Who's coming?"

"No shit, Atobe." Shishido's voiced, ever so obnoxiously, hand already waving at Ohtori, pre-empting the latter's protests at his language.

Oshitari, in contrast, merely looked up briefly from his novel. "I presume Gakuto would be going. I had better go then."

Mukahi would have taken umbrage if not for Ohtori's address to Reiko. Again. He seemed to be making 'saving the day' a regular duty. "I'd stay to supervise practice in your place, Reiko-san. Hiyoshi-san can help me. I'm sure the rest will be going."

It was one of her new rules that the Regulars do their best not to _all _disappear together. Elite and unapproachable were two different things. She personally adored the latter but it would make hell for next year's team. Ignoring Shishido's protests at his doubles' partner's decision, – she had thought he was capable of independent thought and action – she gestured her fellow second years to the side to brief them, while shooting Atobe a quick look that told her cousin she would see him at the bus in a few moments.

"It's standard procedure today, so this briefing isn't exactly necessary. Laps, then swings for all. Those that are not up to par, you can up the amounts as is appropriate – reasonably. Put the rest through practice matches. Following that, you can run through mass cool down, before getting them to clear the courts according to the roster, unless someone gets punishment duty. Keep an eye out for any potential for next year, of course." Reiko explaining, taking her time just to annoy her waiting cousin. Judging from the appreciative gleam in Hiyoshi's eye, she suspected he had picked up on what she was doing. She was just pointing out contingencies she usually took with errant members when a shadow stood in the clubroom doorway.

"Rei, we're ready to go already. Ore-sama is sure that Ohtori is not _that_ incompetent that he needs you to hold his hand." Atobe drawled from the door, ever the diva. "Of course, he'd be wise to avoid hand-holding if he wanted to preserve his life from the insanity and sadism of Rikkaidai." He added, seeing her glare intensify, even as a blush began to tinge her cheeks pink.

Hurriedly, she waved a hand to Hiyoshi and Ohtori in lieu of goodbye and stalked out of the door, passing an amused Atobe, muttering curses and plans of humiliating her cousin under her breath.

* * *

Reiko was just about ready to _kill_ someone five minutes into the bus ride. As was their wont, they had taken the huge bus even though a mini would have sufficed to carry the seven of them. One would think that given such a large space, peace would reign. But _no_.

This was, after all, Hyotei's insane tennis Regulars. They defied all conventions, despite belonging to the upper echelons of society where convention was _determined_.

Oddly enough, this round of insanity had begun with Jiroh.

She had conveniently forgotten that sweet, sleepy Akutagawa Jiroh had an insane side too, just like any other Hyotei Regular. It seldom appeared and in fact, never had appeared during the duration of her education in Hyotei until now. This was in distinct contrast to the regular diva attitude from Keigo, the constant flirt that was Oshitari, the sniping and crudeness of Mukahi and Shishido… Hiyoshi's persistent gekyukujo came to mind, as well. And Kabaji's silence and lack of a vocabulary was just… Weird! Up to this point, she had figured that aside from herself, only Jiroh and Ohtori were the only sane people on the team.

_I guess it's just me and Ohtori now_, she sighed to herself, trying to control the urge to just yell at them.

It was extremely difficult, given how Jiroh was practically bouncing around the vehicle in excitement and annoying practically everyone in the process, save for the stoic Kabaji.

A face suddenly popped into view right into hers, eliciting a scream. Who else was it _but_ Jiroh? "Hi, 'Chi-chan! 'Zen-chan!"

The tick on her forehead was growing, she was pretty sure of that, even as she fixed her glare on him. "Eep! Bye, 'Chi-chan! Cheer up, we'll be seeing them soon~!"

Her fury turned quickly to bafflement. Just who did Jiroh mean by "them"? She turned to question her cousin, who had taken the seat across the aisle from her, only to find him missing.

"Shishido, shut up!" Mukahi's shriek drew her attention. "Don't get him started!"

"Fuck!" Shishido cursed, even as she heard her cousin's voice go in what she termed 'rant mode.' It was reserved for Fuji and Sanada, from what she could tell. She was guessing it was the latter – it seemed to be his favored rant topic since she had transferred.

Oshitari's drawl could _just_ be heard over the ruckus, as she approached them. "Too late, Shishido, on both counts."

She got there just in time to see Shishido's face be suffused in shades of red. Whether it was fury or embarrassment, she wasn't too sure. "Damn it, Oshitari! I didn't mean it that way!"

"Damn straight you're too late. And you _better _have not meant it that way to Yuushi!" Mukahi glared daggers at Shishido.

It was… amusing to watch Shishido splutter in indignation, attempting to find the words to voice his protests. "Shut up, Mukahi. He's nothing in that sense!"

And it appeared that there was no pleasing Mukahi either. "Take that back!"

She met Oshitari's bemused eyes, even as Shishido and Mukahi's argument scaled to include tackling and wrestling now. When a particular fist came a little too closer for comfort, though, she let loose. "Enough! I don't care how much you two want to _do_ each other. Save it for your own rooms. And Oshitari? As amusing as they are, your purpose on this trip is to keep them _alive_, _not_ to gain amusement from their possible demise."

Two pairs of wide eyes (they had believed her to be wholly innocent) and a pair of still bemused eyes met Reiko's harsh glare.

Then Mukahi's blinked and he turned to his doubles partner. "Yuu~shi. What does wrestling have to do with sex?"

Even Atobe was stunned into silence at that.

"I think pink hair is cute~" A singsong voice sang into the awkward silence just as Jiroh (again) popped out of nowhere.

In unison, the rest of the Regulars plus Reiko, minus Kabaji, yelled. "Jiroh!"

Amid the argument, and the temper, Reiko took a while to process Jiroh's words and then the connotations of that and the scenery she was seeing. As directionally challenged as she was, it looked vaguely familiar. The kind of familiar that she felt when she had only been to the place once or twice. It didn't make sense till she put the two together.

Pink hair.

Jiroh on crack.

… Marui.

_Rikkai._

"Atobe Keigo, get your ass here, _now_!"

* * *

When the obviously foreign bus had pulled into a stop at Rikkaidai High a short while later, the casual observer would have been surprised to see no one alighting. The more seasoned viewer, accustomed to seeing the raucous Hyotei team alight and then harass the home team, would have been even more surprised.

Then again, they wouldn't have known what had transpired aboard the vehicle since Echizen Reiko found out where the bus was headed.

Atobe had paled upon his cousin's yell. Her sputtering rage and demands to go back to Hyotei, however, had amused him enough for him to be capable of reviving his diva attitude. "You did say you wanted to be able to challenge without censure, Rei."

"Well, yes, I did." She couldn't deny _that_. "But not on training time! And not during _their_ training time as well! And Yanagi would be there!"

"As he has been there each and every time I've gone, Rei." He calmly replied. "As I recall, you had no issue playing with him there the last time."

A blush suffused her face much like one had Shishido's earlier.

Oshitari felt it necessary to insert his two yen worth then. "One would think you were _avoiding_ Rikkai, Echizen. Misaki would find this interesting, no doubt."

Her glare would have skewered him, were it possible, even as she turned to pleading with her cousin. "Kei, whoever you want to challenge, can't it be done _outside_ training?"

"Iyada." He threw her favorite phrase of refusal back at her, and then just as she had, changed his tactics on his persuasion. "Suck it up, chibi, we're here. You can't tell me you're scared to lose."

Almost immediately, her spine straightened and her eyes burned at the challenge.

"You didn't tell me the score the last time. Don't tell me you lost and are scared to lose _again_, Rei?" He deliberately continued provoking her, playing on her need to prove him wrong.

True to form, she clambered on a seat, reaching overhead to grab her bag, challenge thrumming through her. "Let's play, Kei."

* * *

"Marui… Give me back my shirt. 'Mura's going to have my head if we're late again, _damn it_!" Niou cursed even as the redhead dodged him – with his shirt – grinning maniacally.

Speak of the devil, a deceptively calm voice carried over to them from the doorway. "I'm sure Niou and Marui have some plausible reason for their tardiness, Renji… I believe?" An equally deceptively gentle smile was leveled upon them.

The duo 'eep'ed.

Yes, Rikkaidai High's tennis Regulars were just preparing to have their normal training that day.

Or so they thought, until Kirihara crashed into the _other_ clubroom door in sheer excitement. "Hey, hey! Their bus just pulled up. Time to mess up the training menu!"

"Coherently, Aka-chan." Even Yukimura had to sigh at his protégé's lack of eloquence.

Bright green eyes blinked at them. "Buchou? It's been a while since districts. What else always happens after Districts that messes up training?"

"Akaya, you mess up training on a regular basis." Jackal couldn't help but point out. It was true. The resident Devil enjoyed making trouble with Niou and Marui – the three of them frequently fought and argued and essentially made a nuisance of themselves, disrupting training in the process.

"Atobe." Sanada spoke from behind Yukimura; he had only come in when it seemed like the whole group of Regulars sans himself had decided to skip out on training today.

Kirihara's excited bounce and grin was enough to confirm his conjecture.

Yukimura and Yanagi exchanged resigned looks as they followed the grumpy Sanada and excited Kirihara out of the door, presumably to preempt World War III from breaking out. "I'll postpone today's training to the empty slot on Saturday, Seiichi."

Back in the clubroom, Niou snatched his shirt from Marui's limp fingers. "Time to move, Marui." He waved a hand in front of the tensai's eyes, only to be held in a death grip. "Marui?"

"Atobe. Hyotei. Fan boy." The redhead was shaking in… was that fear? "Hide me!"

Niou sighed. "Come on, Marui. Get out there or you'll end up trashing the clubroom when he hunts you down. And 'Mura will _really_ have your head then." He propelled the trembling tensai to the door, exchanging exasperated looks with Jackal and Yagyuu, even as he strove to reach the rest of the Regulars in order to watch the hilarity that was Atobe and Sanada's interaction. Not to mention the fact that Atobe's cousin might be here… The interaction between her and Yukimura would be… interesting, to say the least.

* * *

**A/N:** Again, I apologize for the wait. But the good news is that I finished planning the bare bones of the plot, right down to the end. The whole Rikkai-Hyotei interaction was supposed to fit into one chapter, but 2k+ is generally my limit for a chapter. I'm also going to try to pre-write chapters, and post them on a weekly/fortnightly basis, so this fic would be updating more regularly.

I didn't realize how much ignoring the messed up plot affected my writing. When I did the whole transfer-to-Hyotei thing, my plot essentially went haywire, and I figured I'd just work it out as I went along. Well, fine idea. It drove my writing style to go on crack. But that's worked out now, so yup! Expect the next chapter within 2 weeks, I hope.

Enjoy, and please R&R.

-iirse


	12. XI: The Sights We See

**A/N:** It's officially Saturday where I am so I'm uploading this now! Too excited to wait. I can never sit on a finished chapter and not upload it. It's just painful! A ridiculously long chapter for an unusually short wait. With the abruptness of the last chapter, I'll save the ranting for later (: Do R&R though! -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 11 – **_**The Sights We See**_

Like clockwork, the Rikkaidai tennis team had settled into their typical formation by the time they were within sight of the Hyotei Regulars. Sanada and Yanagi had moved to flank Yukimura out of sheer habit, and an excited Kirihara had managed to restrain himself enough to contain his bouncing to an area behind Yanagi. Doubles 1 and 2 fell in line behind them, Niou holding on to Marui with the aid of Jackal, much to Yagyuu's amusement.

The Gentleman shifted his attention to the incoming team. Unlike the ranks of Rikkai, they were more spread out. Atobe walked in front, as expected, flanked by the unfazed Kabaji, with a hyperactive Jiroh at his side. Akutagawa was bouncing as much as an unrestrained Kirihara, in that moment.

He turned his attention to Atobe's other side.

Where Oshitari usually stood was a figure clad in pristine white, even smaller than Mukahi. Oshitari himself was canting his head towards the figure, before making his way over to Akutagawa. The figure, a girl, he could tell now, turned her attention to the bickering Mukahi and Shishido once Oshitari was gone and silenced them both with what looked like a well-placed glare.

Niou smirked almost imperceptibly when he saw Yukimura tense ever so slightly as the figures became clearer. Unfortunately (in the Trickster's point of view), his buchou had regained his usual mien of unflappability by the time the two teams were within earshot of one another. "Atobe."

"Yukimura." The diva's chilly gaze shifted to the side. "Sanada."

Rikkaidai's fukubuchou wasn't nearly as calm as his captain. "Atobe. As usual, I will have to tell you that this visit of yours will have to a waste of your time, as I don't intend to pander to your whims."

Reiko had been expected her cousin to lose his temper at the insinuation that he was a willful child, but to her surprise, he merely raised an eyebrow. She swore it was the Takeuchi blood in them that led them to favor the expression. "As usual, I have to ask if you honestly think this is a whim. Unusually, I also have to ask whether you are that afraid of losing."

It was the exact same card he had played on Reiko mere minutes earlier but unlike his cousin and himself, Sanada was used to following the rigidities of rules, drilled into him since birth, along with his pride. With the two in conflict, he didn't respond in exactly the way Reiko had, but instead turned to his captain.

"Go ahead, Genichirou." Yukimura replied to the unspoken question, knowing it was inevitable anyway.

Permission granted, the two stalked silently towards one of the courts that the non-Regulars quickly vacated.

With Oshitari being occupied with restraining the hyperactive Jiroh (the very duty she had given to his smirking face), Reiko sighed softly, knowing the apology for her cousin's inconsiderate behavior fell to her. "Gomenasai, Yukimura-san. Had I known Keigo would pull something like this, I would have stopped him before he made the announcement."

"It's normal, puri." Niou interjected, having left Marui to the mercy of his fan boy. "Akaya was actually counting on it to happen soon. He won the pool."

"What pool." The Trickster paled as his captain's attention was turned to him; the sentence may have been phrased as a question, but it was clearly a demand. The whole team knew just how protective Yukimura was of Kirihara.

Yanagi chose then to intervene. "We were considering the possibilities of when Hyotei would turn up, Seiichi. I believe only yourself and Genichirou chose to abstain. Marui bet never – highly unlikely, and probably more his wishful thinking than anything. Niou and Yagyuu bet on by next week, and Jackal and I had it at by yesterday. Akaya came in this morning and told me to put down his bet as Hyotei would show today."

"Intuition or gossip, I wonder." Reiko voiced her thoughts aloud, bringing Rikkaidai's attention back to Hyotei's team. "Since we _are_ here, what the _heck_ did Keigo mean when he called this a training day trip? Oshitari?"

Freed from the duty of restraining Jiroh now that he had failed, Oshitari had to face the Princess's glare. "Normally Shishido and Gakuto would watch."

"Meaning they would watch, jeer and squabble, while you and Ohtori attempted to play referee. And Kabaji would be there to say 'Usu' while Jiroh harassed Marui-san. And Hiyoshi would try to pull his typical 'gekyukujo.'" She gave him the Takeuchi eyebrow, daring him to contradict her.

"Aa..." Oshitari couldn't very well deny the truth, even though it just fed her temper.

Reiko turned to glare at her cousin's back before turning back to them. "Training day trip, my _ass_. Cousin dearest is going to get it."

"Reiko-san?" She turned her glare onto the person who dared to address her.

Behind Yukimura, Kirihara 'eep'ed in fear; Reiko doused her temper slightly, knowing that it logically _wasn't_ Rikkaidai's fault. Though admittedly, Seiichi could have warned her or something while they were talking or messaging, right? "Gomen, Keigo's just so frustrating. You wanted to say something?"

"I was going to say that since you're here already, why not throw your teammates in practice matches against us? After all, that would count as training, would it not?" He suggested, knowing that Yanagi's presence would probably be the only factor to irk her.

Reiko considered it momentarily. Rikkaidai probably already had all their current data from the year prior, and heck, if Keigo dared to go all out on Sanada, why the hell not? "Mukahi and Oshitari, Shishido and Jiroh, doubles. Kabaji, singles with me."

* * *

It had taken a while to organize things, but they settled on a rather odd lineup. Shishido and Jiroh faced Marui and Jackal in Doubles 2, simply because she and Yukimura had decided it would be fun to make them squirm. Niou and Yagyuu, on the other hand, faced an established doubles pair like themselves in Mukahi and Oshitari. There was no helping it, since that particular Hyotei Doubles pair was simply that codependent.

To both teams' amusement, she had decided to pit Kabaji against Yanagi, leaving Kirihara to watch on the sidelines while in mutual agreement, she and Yukimura had chosen to face off again. The number of courts on the Rikkai campus made it possible for all matches to taken place concurrently. That way, the Yanagi problem (as they had termed it) was minimized.

The problem, Reiko initially discovered, wasn't so much Yanagi, but more the ongoing match on the court adjacent to theirs. She had initially thought it to be her overactive imagination but when Yukimura had failed to return a Drive that he had defeated _years_ ago upon seeing it, she knew better.

"Referee, please restate the whole score." She requested politely of the Rikkaidai club member, who frowned, but nonetheless did as she asked.

"2 games, all; 30 – love, in Echizen-san's favor."

Yukimura didn't even react; merely move to the baseline as though on automatic to receive. She huffed in annoyance, determined to call him out on it. "Referee, I'd like to hold the game for a moment. Yukimura-san!"

When he didn't reply to her call for the second time, the referee decided to take pity on her. "Buchou!"

Reiko bit her lip. She didn't want to do this. The thought of it sent blood rushing to her cheeks. And she knew she was blushing. Oh kami, she _really_ didn't want to do this, not in _Rikkaidai_… But there was no way in hell she was about to play a half-assed match just because he was distracted by kami-knew-what. "Seiichi-san!"

"Ah, yes, Reiko-san?" _Finally_, she mentally yelled, keeping a placid façade on while ignoring the surprised looks and curious murmurs of the people within earshot watching their match. Mentally, she felt like killing him, knowing how the rumor mills worked.

"Would you rather we ceased this match?" She asked politely, even though she was seething – whether from his inattention or the embarrassment, she couldn't quite tell. "If you wish to observe your team, by all means, don't let me stop you. I would like to see how Shishido and Jiroh are progressing as well, were that the case."

Thankfully, he saw through that. Or mayhap, he just didn't like ruining a possibly challenging match as much as she did. "Iie, I'm fine, Reiko-san. I just need to keep track of Genichirou's match with Atobe in order to intervene at the right point."

"As you have always done." She added the unspoken statement. "I fail to see why. Can Sanada-san not deal with failure? Keigo has lost before and isn't the worse for it."

"On home ground? Team morale isn't something to be trifled with, I think." He wondered how could she ask the obvious, but when the air chilled, he began to regret it – he obviously had said something wrong.

Reiko felt the familiar anger rising again, at the assumption she didn't know how to handle a team (the same assumption that had been made of her back in Seigaku) but focused the rage into debating the point. "Winning and losing is part of the game. Yes, you want your team to be invincible, but I think that it might be appreciated by your _entire_ team if you showed that everyone is flawed, and equal to some degree."

"What are you saying?" Narrowed amethyst met her cool amber in consideration.

She shrugged. "I'm suggesting that you let the match play in full. If Kei loses, then so be it, he'll get his own punishment in training when we return to Hyotei. If Sanada-san loses, and you grant him the typical punishment, you'll prove to your club that losing isn't what you want, but as long as you keep trying to improve, it's… acceptable."

Now that her temper had cooled, she allowed some of the iciness to seep away. "You make your standards seem more approachable, and make them more willing to improve. And you give Kirihara-san an easier time to find potential, next year." She offered him a tentative smile. "And we get to play a normal match, the normal level of challenge that we put into it, no rigging, and just pure luck."

"And you get my full attention for the match, rather than playing a lackluster one." He added _her_ unspoken statement, amused when she hid behind the rim of her trademark cap – it had sounded too much like Misaki's teasing: _don't you want _all_ his attention on you?_ "I'll take your point, Reiko-san. Referee, resume."

* * *

On the adjacent court, Atobe prepared to serve another Tannhauser, having long mitigated the stamina problem that came with that serve. The game had just begun, after all. He allowed himself a brief glance towards his cousin's match to see her talking to Rikkaidai's captain, their match seemingly on hold, before they walked back to the service line. Figuring he would get it out of her later, he served.

Much to his surprise, Sanada didn't even move to intercept the ball. While his opponent's chances of actually returning the ball weren't perfect, it hadn't stopped him before. This change made Atobe wonder just what was wrong with him.

"3 games to 2, in Atobe's favor." Their referee called, also wondering just what had made the fukubuchou give up the match point, of all points to falter at. When Sanada failed to serve, his confusion was compounded. "Ah, fukubuchou! It's your serve!"

Were it anyone else, one would have called his expression startled, but it was Sanada. Rikkaidai's Emperor merely nodded and served.

Atobe twitched at the basic serve that hurtled towards him, choosing to return it in the same way, power packed behind it. If it would be a game of basics, so be it; he would only up the ante when Sanada did, given his opponent's odd behavior.

"Fuu." The Emperor declared, even as he returned the ball towards Atobe's side of the court.

The diva's eyes narrowed. The speed of the technique had increased _again_, damn it! Reflexively, he flipped the grip to execute Viking Horn – it was better to be safe than sorry, after all – in conjunction with Ice World. He had managed to use it in conjunction with most of his moves since developing it, although it was an imperfect science, seeing how Sanada managed to hit the ball back. "Zan."

"Too late, Sanada." Atobe called, easily winning the point since he already had Ice World activated. He would have expected Sanada to notice that and avoid using _Zan_ though. They had played long enough to recognize techniques without having to restate them every time, after all.

"15 – Love." The referee announced, for formality's sake.

Atobe turned back to face Sanada when he had reached the service line only to see the other's eyes focused on the adjacent court. _So that was the problem_, he groused. Yukimura normally kept a close eye on their match. However, this time, his attention was completely focused on his match against Reiko, leaving none to spare for theirs. Silently, he called out his Insight; at least he would be more conscious of his opponent's distraction then.

But just like his baby cousin, he hated lackluster matches – what then was the point in playing them? Especially opponents like Sanada who were supposed to be on their level, and a challenge.

Focusing on his distracted opponent, he watched Sanada's behavior in relation to the Yukimura-Echizen match going on. It was… curious, to say the least. Sanada flinched when their conversation made Reiko smile slightly and Yukimura laugh. And he was nearly a hundred percent positive that the Emperor's grip on his racquet tightened when they called one another by _first_ name.

_Only one way to test that_, Atobe decided.

"Sanada! Your serve!" He called – Atobes were too dignified to yell, anyway.

* * *

Away on a further court, Yanagi Renji threw away his data tennis to play recklessly – so as to avoid being copied by Kabaji. While doing so, he happened to catch sight of the pauses in play in what Seiichi had named 'Singles 1' and 'Singles 2' of their impromptu competition.

It was stunningly parallel: Hyotei yelling at Rikkai.

His analytical mind wondered, just briefly, whether there was any other significant parallel before his logical mind dismissed the idea. He suspected Seiichi and Echizen to be headed somewhere more than platonic, whereas Atobe and Genichirou had always been another more than harsh rivals.

* * *

His mind appropriately taken over by the heat of the game, Yukimura failed to take much notice of the match going on in the adjacent court until their referee called for them to change court. Briefly taking a drink of water, he looked over to Sanada and Atobe's match, eyes widening comically at the sight he saw.

"Ah, Seiichi-san?" Reiko called hesitantly. He had insisted she continued using his first name, much to her dismay. Kami knew what Rikkaidai would make of this. And they had their share of wealthy students who had well-connected parents and… Well, their mothers' reaction would be horrible!

Unfortunately for her, he hadn't thought that far, apparently.

"Gomenasai, Reiko-san." He returned his attention reluctantly to her, before explaining. "I was distracted by your cousin's match. It is odd, to say the least."

She looked at him curiously before turning her attention to the match. Though it was by no means nearby, she managed to see what was causing him distress. "Kei's playing normally, as far as I can tell, as he would against anyone of our caliber. But Sanada-san seems a little _off_ somehow. His shots seem stronger, but…" She searched for the appropriate word. "Out of control?"

"You see what I see then." Yukimura felt settled that he wasn't the only one to notice it. "We're at tiebreak, are we not?"

Reiko nodded in affirmative. "We'll finish this game, then go and see what is wrong?" She suggested; crossing over to what was now her side of the court.

He made a noise of agreement, brushing past her to the opposite side. His back to her, he missed the sharp rise in color that ghosted her cheeks before she banked it down and her quickly averted eyes.

What he didn't miss, though, was the slightest hitch in her breathing. That was enough to cause a small smile to come forth even as he tossed the ball into the air, serving it over to her.

The basic move was met by an equally deceptively simple return that sparked an easy volleying for so late a point in their game.

Then Reiko smirked _that_ smirk at him. "The big guns then, Seiichi-san?"

"We do want to end this, ne, Reiko-san?" He replied, activating Muga no Kyouchi to return her smash with Fuji's Higuma Otoshi.

"1 – 0!" The referee called.

Unsurprisingly, she remained unfazed. "You do realize that would only work once, ne?" Then promptly returned his testing lob with another smash.

A smash that even the more advanced Kirin Otoshi failed to return.

"1 – all!"

"Cyclone, upgraded." She replied, in answer to Yukimura's questioning look. "You cannot think that we don't learn new tricks, Seiichi-san."

He really _looked_ at her then, and had to admit that the Princess that stood across the net from him now was a far cry from the one that defeated him three years ago. She had been a scrawny brat then. Now, though her height hadn't increased that much, maturity had already set in. The title 'Princess' was more fitting now than ever.

"No, I don't." He replied, just loud enough for her to hear, before serving.

"2 – 1!"

"Vanishing Serve."

She likewise looked at him as he named the serve for her. "And we all have changed and improved." Canting her head to aside, she realized just how much he was a far cry from the barely recovered opponent she recalled. Where she had scorned the title of 'Demigod' back then, it seemed to work well now.

She deliberately closed her eyes to clear her thoughts, before focusing them once she reopened them. "Well, since I called out the big guns, let's not bother holding back the new moves, shall we?" She arched back before delivering her serve.

It was powerful, he deduced, when he caught it and returned. The sheer power necessary to serve like that… Then his eyes widened for the second time that day, as the ball struck the string much like it had years ago, to split and land neatly on his side.

"Net! 2 – all." The referee managed to call, in spite of his shock.

He exchanged a look with Reiko then, wondering if it was her serve or had he unwittingly managed her technique. He personally suspected the former more than the latter, since he had returned it normally. The Princess's smirk told it all. "Samurai Serve." She informed him. "Essentially sort of a cross between Syuu-nii's Fifth Counter, and my Samurai Drive."

"Fuji Syuusuke's Fifth Counter was broken by Shitenhouji's Shiraishi." Yukimura pointed out, moving to serve.

A shrug was his reply. "Getting the idea from Syuu-nii's counter doesn't necessarily mean I've taken its weakness as well, Seiichi-san!" She answered, watching his serve shoot past her.

"2 – 3!"

Another Samurai Serve brought them back to the same point. "Net! 3 – all!"

"Winning our service is no way to keep this going, ne?" Reiko commented off-handedly, even as she settled casually into the receiving position. And grinned at the slightly unruffled look on her opponent's face when she returned his Vanishing Serve.

He wasn't fazed enough to miss though, leaving her to sigh and resort to her favored technique to frustrate opponents that she had plagiarized from her father and, to his pride, used effectively. The Zone drew in his ball, even as she sighed. "Extremely high speed serve, and extremely difficult to see. Reminds me of both Ohtori and Syuu-nii's trademark serves."

Her observation made him tick, though. Ohtori and Fuji were both familiar opponents to her. One being her current teammate and the other her brother-in-law. No doubt she was used to playing them. It would have been easy then to try and break his service. To his surprise, she abruptly chose to halt using the Zone, instead deciding to smash… His eyes narrowed at the last moment, finally recognizing the old technique. He was, unfortunately, too late.

"Sky Inversion Drop Volley." She uttered softly as she landed back on the ground.

"3 – 4!"

Reiko took her service again, as expected. "Net! 3 – 5!"

To her surprise, he served a normal serve after that. Then again, maybe she shouldn't have been too surprised. After all, there was no point wasting energy on a defeated technique. His return, though, cost her that point; so great was her shock.

"4 – 5!"

Yukimura took pride in her surprised expression. "Shadow Sound. Akaya came up with the name, since he faced it first. Multiple shadows, while the ball disappears. And the sound of the ball is distorted."

"A move that is hard to defeat." She acknowledged. "We need to end this soon, I think." Reiko gestured towards the adjacent court.

He had to agree, frowning slightly at the sight on the other ongoing match. It was completely unlike the other Atobe-Sanada matches he had watched before. Shaking himself, he nodded towards Reiko for her to serve.

"Net! 4 – 6!"

He revived the defeated serve, to Reiko's surprise, though she managed to return it, nonetheless with a favored Drive. A short rally later, she wasn't too surprised when his newly unveiled technique was delivered to her.

To _his_ surprise, she returned it, neatly on the baseline.

"4 – 7! 7 games to 6. Game, set and match won by Hyotei's Echizen." Their referee announced the formality, even as the spectators began to buzz, and the opponents met at the net.

Yukimura couldn't help but stare at Reiko. "How did you break it?" He was baffled. She was, after all, the first to do so.

"Luck." She smiled that small smile. "The distortions in both sight and sound had to have an originating point, so I estimated it to be the midst of it. I probably could break it down to a science given a while, but for now, its luck."

She turned to face him fully now, gesturing towards the adjacent court. "Don't we have a match to watch, now that ours is done?"

Yukimura could only wordlessly follow her lead to watch her cousin play against his vice-captain.

* * *

Doubles 1 and 2 sauntered back to where Atobe and Sanada were playing moments before their respective captain and assistant coach joined them. Niou's near-flawless imitation as well as Yanagi's data-oriented mind, not to mention Oshitari's observation skill, quickly caught onto the oddities of the match.

"Genichirou is rather volatile today, is he not, Niou?" Yanagi offered his observation for his math partner to comment upon.

The Trickster lounged against a resigned Yagyuu. "Puri. Sanada's harsher but messier."

"Fukubuchou keeps glaring in buchou's direction!" Kirihara piped up, from his spot along the fence, having alternated between watching Sanada and Yukimura's matches. Information disseminated, it was promptly discarded as he turned to look at them. "What are your scores like, anyway?"

"Doubles 2, 6 – 4. Doubles 1, 7 – 5. Singles 3, 6 – 3." Yanagi recited.

"Add Singles 2, 6 games to 7, 4 – 7, to your scores, Renji." Yukimura commented, coming up behind his team; Reiko weaving between him and Yanagi to settle her smaller form in front of him, between Mukahi and Marui, to watch her cousin's match.

Kirihara turned his back on the game to stare at Reiko. "You _won_? _Again_?"

She simply couldn't stop her rising giggle at how much he resembled a fish out of water, as uncharacteristic as it was of her. "It was luck, Kirihara-san. If my lucky shot at breaking Seiichi-san's Shadow Sound had failed, it would have taken longer yet."

"You _broke_ it?" If anything, his jaw only swung lower. Flies would be going in soon, if Niou and Marui had anything to say about it, and if they weren't so distracted by the ongoing match.

She blinked at him. "It's an imprecise science still, but yes, I sort of did. It makes up for losing our last game to a _sneeze_." She tilted her head backward momentarily to level a glare at the mirthful Yukimura, who had overheard her last sentence. "Anyway, what were you saying about Sanada-san glaring, Kirihara-san?"

It was Kirihara's turn to blink at her. "You mean you didn't feel it? He was boring holes in the direction of your game with his glares! 'Mura-buchou, aren't you going to stop fukubuchou?"

"It would be unfair for both him and Atobe if I stopped him while playing a full game against Reiko-san, Akaya." Yukimura levelly answered, ignoring both teams' surprised looks. "It is a little too late to stop them anyway; they've been at match game for a while already."

Reiko, in the meantime, was conversing with the redheads on either side of her.

"I don't know about you, Echizen-chan, but I think the whole glaring thing sounds like jealousy to me." Mukahi groused, grumpy that he had lost. Niou and Yagyuu were just devious. Evil.

Marui, on the other hand, disagreed that point of view. "Of what, Mukahi? Maybe he just wanted out from the game?"

He was granted a skeptical look from Reiko, who was promptly startled by Niou popping into her face from behind, giving voice to her skepticism. "Sanada always played these matches, without wanting out. As I recall, he always protested at buchou stopping the matches, puri."

"Niou-san!" She swatted at the Trickster in her face.

A deliberate cough preempted anything he might have said. "'Haru, you might want to move, and soon, if you value your life." Yagyuu interjected, observant eyes already marking the slightest change in Yukimura's behavior that promised a world of pain for Niou should he not desist at once. Yanagi did as well, albeit silently, and wondered if Mukahi's theory on jealousy and his previous theory of parallels would hold any water.

Fortunately, they were all saved by the Singles 1 referee announcing the score. "7 games to 5. Game, set and match won by Hyotei's Atobe." Then the last two Regulars made their way over to them, and Hyotei prepared to leave.

"It was a more fruitful training trip than what normally occurred today." Atobe acknowledged. "You do plan trainings well with Rei-chan, I must say." He commented off-handedly to Yukimura, much like his cousin had done earlier in her game and earning the same unraveling effect.

Unfortunately, Rikkaidai's captain had better control than that, and only replied in utmost courtesy. "It was interesting, Atobe. And one that perhaps could be repeated if there was the time later in the year."

"I'll say we'll try." Reiko interjected. "Since we never know what Sakaki-sensei would agree to or come up with next – Excuse me!" She fumbled with her bag fleetingly before locating her phone. Flipping open the device, she put it to her ear even as she walked a short distance away. "_Hey, Kev._"

Watching her go, Atobe explained. "Her rival-turned-friend from the Goodwill Games. Her family has a history with his, so to speak, but they are fairly close since playing the circuits together. I think we'd best be going." He nodded his thanks to Yukimura, before snapping his fingers at Reiko.

The girl rolled her eyes at her cousin, mocking his actions, even as she followed the team, waving goodbye to Yukimura and the rest of the Rikkaidai team, phone still affixed to her ear.

* * *

"Renji, I'll defer to you today." Yukimura's softly uttered words after Hyotei left didn't escape any of them. Heads whipped around to stare at their captain. "Given that Genichirou lost to Atobe and Reiko-san... won, it would be better if it was your authority today."

Intuiting Yukimura's intent, Yanagi nodded in agreement. "Then thankfully, I didn't lose, or I fear to wonder who would be in charge then. Even Yagyuu and Jackal can be forcibly influenced by their partners."

"Akaya?" Yukimura suggested.

Yagyuu fell in step beside them, having left Jackal to deal with Marui and Niou for now. "Perhaps without us, buchou. With us around, he regresses back to the child that he was." He was met with nods of agreement from the two Demons. "Buchou, I wanted to ask you… Did you lose that game because you were too distracted by Echizen-chan?"

The blunette turned on him at once. "Niou Masaharu!"

"Gomenasai, buchou! I couldn't resist!" Niou laughed, running back to Niou (that was actually Yagyuu).

Yagyuu glared at the Trickster. "You _promised_ to stay in character for once, 'Haru."

He was met with Niou sticking out his tongue and a quick 'puri' before the silverette changed targets. "Ne, Sanada, were you incapacitated out of jealousy earlier?"

"Tarundoru!" The fukubuchou yelled, hand raised, only to make contact with air as Niou slipped away.

Yukimura shot a look at Yanagi demanding intervention. "Niou, Yagyuu, laps for disrupting practice, from now till debriefing!"

It was just another day at Rikkaidai High. Just a rather unique one.

* * *

**A/N:** I originally intended this and the previous chapter to be _a_ single chapter, and then I almost cut this into half when I realized I hit approximately 5000 words here. Since I'm pre-writing now, though, longer chapters seem to be a trend - so it remains at this unusually long length. I'm already done with the next 2 chapters and planning the 3rd one following this. I think Saturday/Sunday updates weekly would work well, now that I've got this under control, don't you think?

I hope you enjoyed the Hyotei-Rikkai interaction. While this chapter remains largely, and painfully, technical, the next few should contain more fluff. I'd like to add that whatever creative license I took in creating new techniques... They remain merely a figment of my imagination. I'm no Inui or Yanagi to know whether it is actually possible - though it'd be cool if it were!

All that said, please R&R and lemme know what you think, and if you want to add any suggestions, please do! Sometimes, it gives me ideas that I won't have considered otherwise. Thankkks!

-iirse


	13. XII: Hindsight Is 20 20, or So They Say

**A/N:** Yea, so much for Saturday updates. FFnet went insane, as some of you might've heard and denied me the ability to update. Updates will continue as per normal on Saturday! Now that painful technicalities of the last chapter have (hopefully) been forgotten, I'm going to overload you with the fluffy-ness of denial and the possibilities of the future. Please review! -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 12 – **_**Hindsight Is 20/20, or So They Say**_

"I'm so glad you're here, Reiko-chan!" Misaki chattered as she got out of the car with the significantly less excited Echizen-Takeuchi heiress. "Just think! We could have a typical sleepover thing: laze around, play with clothes or design them, paint nails and talk about boys. That would focus on you more than me, of course!"

The last clarification, to Misaki's glee, caused Reiko's cheeks to pink. It was just a little, but enough for the other girl to notice. Unfortunately, Reiko cut in before Misaki could say anything about it. "Misaki-senpai, we are here to do that English project."

"But…" The previously exuberant girl deflated even as she led the way towards her suite, absently nodding to the servants' greetings of 'Okaerinasai, ojou-sama.' She brightened abruptly, putting apprehension into her companion. "But our project on England would be better done with Keigo here. And he isn't coming with Yuushi until dinner because they have some meeting… So we can – "

An exasperated sigh from Reiko interrupted her. "Misaki-senpai, you know we divided up the work already precisely because Kei and I realized that he and Yuushi would be late because there is a meeting for all club head and vice-heads." She caved, though, when she saw the disappointed look on Misaki's face. It wasn't easy for people of their status to find an equal to simply _hang out_ with, after all. "How about we get this done with, and then I'll call 'kaa-san and ask her if she minds me staying over?"

"Really?" The other girl brightened at her affirming nod, and proceeded to happily drag her further into the suite. "Wait… Why do you have to call Echizen-san? Shouldn't you be calling Atobe-san?"

Another exasperated sigh met her befuddled expression. "It's Friday, Misaki-senpai. I normally stay at home during the weekend, not at Kei's. I told 'kaa-san I'll be in late, but not that I wasn't coming back."

"Oh…" Understanding dawned then. "Gomen! You know I'm not good at keeping track of things like that, my organizational skills are absolutely nothing."

"Unless we're talking about clothes and their cousins." Her guest qualified.

Misaki laughed. "Precisely! Since we're on the topic…" She turned critical eyes back on Reiko as she stood at the doorway to her walk-in closet, dressing room and bathroom. "I'm going to shower now; you can stay here and make yourself at home. After that…"

"Somehow, I feel like I don't want to know, Misaki-senpai." Reiko looked at her warily, backing away.

She was proven right at the elder girl's next words. "After that, it's your turn, but I get to choose! In fact, I get to choose all the way till tomorrow morning when you go home, Reiko-chan!"

Judging from the gleam in Misaki's eye, Reiko knew better than to argue. "As long as we finish the project, Misaki-senpai. I don't want to live with a whining Kei for the next week or so."

Happy that her victim had caved, Misaki smiled triumphantly. "With you as taskmaster, I'm sure we will, Reiko-chan! Now in the meantime, make yourself at home, and oh!" She picked up a magazine from her dresser, tossing it to the other girl whose reflexes caught it – and then grimaced at the overly pink cover. "I was flipping through this earlier; page 13, number 5 seems particularly relevant, seeing how I haven't seen you outside of school for a fortnight now because your weekends were all taken up!"

* * *

Reiko let out a sigh as Misaki disappeared into what she had nicknamed the Nakamura heiress's 'primping suite.' Misaki's suite in general was a reflection of her personality, much like how Reiko's rooms in both the Atobe house and her more normal home reflected hers. While Misaki would call Reiko's suite and room sparse, Reiko decided that Misaki was simply cluttered.

Her own rooms that the Atobes had set aside for her were simply decorated by a few posters and photographs consisting of cats and tennis, and some shots with friends she had been coerced into taking. Judging by the large corkboard Misaki had mounted on the wall that was covered haphazardly by neoprints, Polaroid shots and various photographs as well as notes; she would be coerced into taking a photo sooner or later.

It was a miracle that somehow they got along, given how different they were, Reiko mused, settling into a loveseat at the window, boredom leading her to open the magazine Misaki had tossed at her. Though the seat _was_ very comfortable, much like the beanbags she liked strewn around her quarters that let her sleep anywhere. Maybe they weren't that different after all.

Focusing her attention unto the page, Reiko took back the thought immediately once the header caught her eye.

"_Ten Ways to Know You're into Him__"_

Misaki, it seemed to Reiko, was well on her way to become the 'subtle' matchmaker. Still, she argued with herself, she was bored, so why not just read it? There was nothing better to do anyway.

"_#1: You can be yourself with him more than with anyone else_."

She stared at the glossy sheets in front of her with an expression that screamed '_are you serious?'_ It was true she didn't have to restrain her acerbic tongue when they spoke. Seiichi was too nice about it. She returned the favor when dealing with his gently sadistic tones though. And she didn't have to rein in her tennis obsession because he was more than capable in keeping up with her in that aspect. Being at the top of their classes also meant that her scathing comments at the incompetence of some of the teaching staff were easily received, she conceded. But wasn't all this simply because they were fairly similar and equal?

She huffed at the stupidity of the girls who bought into this, idly fiddling with her phone while reading the next point, planning to disparage it.

"_#2: Your attention is always focused on him."_

_You find yourself always staring at him constantly, and when you enter a room full of people, he is the first person you automatically search for._

"It's common courtesy." Reiko voiced aloud at the next point. "Mada mada, ne." He had the capability to keep her attention in conversation, so she didn't doze off. And when you were being spoken to… Well, courtesy dictated you look at the person!

As to the second point… She felt heat rise to her cheeks again at the memory, and cursed silently. Blushing seemed to have become a frequent occurrence in her life after leaving her alone for the past decade and a half or so.

_Reiko had arranged to meet Seiichi a distance from Hyotei at a tennis club that she frequented when she didn't feel like using the courts on the Atobe estate. She entered the lobby and scanned the area, almost instantly locating her target. "Seiichi-san!"_

"_You forgot me already, puri?" A mock-sad Niou voiced from in front of Yukimura, to her surprise. She hadn't seen him, though the silverette stood out far more than Seiichi did. He mimed a broken heart. "I'm so hurt, Echizen-chan! And here I thought we had bonded over our talk of selling the footage of Atobe and Sanada's interaction."_

"_You mean when you suggested that foolish idea only to be shot down by Yagyuu-san?" She drily replied, recollecting the Gentleman's stunned expression at such a dumb idea: _''Haru, we would have to cut the footage of their match. Which tennis team would buy it then? The only team that can afford to waste money like that is Hyotei and they already see it firsthand all the time!'_ Having said her piece, Reiko had turned to Yukimura, ignoring the Trickster who pretended to have been shot. "Gomenasai, Seiichi-san, Kei was hard to shake off my tail."_

_Kirihara and Marui had popped up then, and the seaweed head had promptly piped up with an innocent question that resulted in Marui bristling, Reiko blushing, and Niou cackling. "Ne, Echizen-san, why didn't you see me or Niou-senpai? Marui-senpai, I can understand, but us as well?"_

Niou's next statement sounded a lot like what she was reading, Reiko realized, before shaking herself out of it. She seemed to attract crazy friends like magnets, now with Niou, Marui and Kirihara on that list as well. Some of that crazy might just be rubbing off her…

"_#3: You're actually interested in knowing more about him, regardless of how boring because nothing seems boring."_

Atobe and Sakaki-sensei had caused the particular incident that came to mind, Reiko recalled. Somehow, Atobe needed to give some paperwork to Yagyuu, but Sakaki-sensei was particularly adamant that day that Atobe stay at practice. As an heiress of equal standing, Atobe had delegated the job to her instead.

_She paced the length of the Visitor's Foyer in the entrance hall of Hyotei High. As expected of the school, it was absurdly (in her opinion) ostentatious and opulent. She was so involved in cursing her cousin mentally that she didn't register Yagyuu's presence till he cleared his throat, causing her to spin around, lose her balance, and fall into a nearby table._

_To his credit, the Gentleman did help her up into one of the nearby seats, despite her insistence that she was fine. "'Mura would kill me, puri." He commented, unfazed by her double take._

"_Are you Niou or Yagyuu, really?" She couldn't help but ask, knowing that she would never know anyway._

"'_Haru and I Switched earlier today during my Calculus period, Echizen-san. He didn't let me complete the homework yesterday, so he agreed to bear the punishment." Yagyuu placidly replied. He was, she supposed, long used to the question. "I apologize if I say anything uncharacteristic: we normally spend the day Switched or else I have more warning than that."_

_She offered him a tiny smile. "While Niou-san is a talented illusionist, you aren't too used to pulling the same trick yourself aside from the perfect façade?" Reiko noted the slight surprised look he was unable to control. "People tend to forget that I'm Kei's cousin, and I know some of this stuff too." She reached for the sheaf of papers she had put on the table, handing it to him. Tentatively, she bit her lip before asking. "If you don't mind me asking, Yagyuu-san, what did you mean by Seiichi-san would kill you?"_

"_An uncharacteristic statement, I admit." Yagyuu replied, suspecting that if she didn't get an answer from him, she would go to Yukimura himself and Kami knew where that would end up. "Yukimura tends to be protective of the people he cares about. The team, in general… In particular, Akaya. Any insult is dealt with. That's why no one dares to smear our name even when we were first years in Rikkai High._

"_Judging by your closeness, I daresay that he is as protective of you as of anyone of us. Especially since you probably rival fukubuchou and Yanagi… And Akaya." _

_He took her silence as consent for him to continue. "One of the teams at Nationals last year called Sanada and Akaya whipped, I believe, and essentially declared that they were weaklings pandering to an equally weak captain. To say they were annihilated would be an understatement. Especially when the one who chose to insult them faced Yukimura in singles."_

"_But Seiichi-san isn't bothered by people underestimating him." Reiko pointed out. "In fact, I think he quite enjoys breaking their delusions, and its psychological effects."_

_Yagyuu nodded. "It was more rage _for_ the insult to Sanada and Akaya that he reacted as he did. In a similar way, even though he removed himself from dictating punishment the day Hyotei came over, he made sure Yanagi gave both 'Haru and I laps."_

_She hadn't reacted until he told her of the laps, and looked at him, purely confused. "Why?"_

"_You do recall 'Haru popping up into your face and then hovering?" She nodded, still puzzled. "It was for that. We both got them because even though it's Yukimura, he fails to catch us Switched some times."_

"_So they punish you both to make sure the real culprit can't escape?" Reiko was stuck between the simplicity of their ingenuity and how unfair it was, when Yagyuu nodded in affirmation. "But I don't understand _why_?"_

_Yagyuu shrugged. "Buchou is extremely protective like that. The closer you are to him, the more protective he is. I've lost count of the number of times that 'Haru, Marui and I have been assigned laps when they chose to tease or scare Akaya as 'Haru did to you."_

It remained an odd occurrence to her, simply because she didn't typically care for how other teams in Kantou worked because she trusted that between herself and Keigo, they could manage Hyotei well enough without referring to other models of training. She began to wonder if the magazine had any merit to it.

"_#4: Every time your phone rings or beeps, you hope it's going to be him."_

This was _ridiculous_, Reiko decided upon reading that point, disregarding any prior considerations of credibility. There were only so many people that had her cell phone number. Of that number, only a few would regularly message her. Her friends and team in Hyotei had no need to during school hours, and by the weekend they were _sick_ of each other anyway. And while her acquaintances in Rikkaidai High were fast becoming friends, they weren't that close to share everything.

Likewise, her brothers had their own lives, and her parents were busy doing other things to frequently message her.

When it came down to it, only Misaki, Seiichi, Atobe and Kevin regularly called or messaged her. But Kev and Misaki would rather call the Atobe estate to save her personal cost and Kei… Well, Kei would send a servant, while they were at home. Or else he would send Kabaji.

It was kind of a '_duh!_' that it would be Seiichi's call or message that she was expecting. Really.

"_#5: Hanging out with your friends just isn't as appealing any more in comparison to hanging out with him."_

This would be Misaki's reference, Reiko deduced, deciding her senpai was decidedly deranged – or suffering from lack of attention from a particular diva now that training had stepped up. She absently flipped open the phone in her free hand, keying in a message to Oshitari.

_I think Misaki's suffering from Kei's lack of attention, Oshitari. She's reading magazines with really weird ideas. Don't ask._

She knew he won't reply till after the meeting – even her cousin was too well disciplined to message in such a large meeting, much less his second – but that would perhaps give him some incentive to help her at dinner. Knowing Misaki, her senpai would find some way to talk about Seiichi. Somehow. And twist it as well, which would amuse Keigo to no end.

Just like she did with this magazine.

Honestly, talking about appealing? A challenging tennis match was _always_ appealing. She didn't hate hanging out with Misaki – on the contrary, she found the elder girl's company decent – but the opportunity to play a match against a challenging opponent that wasn't someone she had played from childhood was always enticing. Especially now that Syuu-nii was out of the list of People I Can Play and Not Fall Asleep On.

Ridiculous.

"_#7: You're ridiculously happy when you're with him. Even when there is a conflict with him, you have to try to stay mad for more than two minutes."_

Last weekend when she had gone home…

"_You smile a lot more, Rei-chan." Echizen Rinko commented casually. Nanjiroh had made himself useful for once and arranged for Syuusuke to bunk in with Yuuta at St. Michael's High where the younger Fuji now studied for the weekend so that they didn't need to deal with heated tempers from both Seigaku's tensai and Hyotei's Princess. _

_Reiko stopped on her way out of the kitchen, turning to stare at her mother. Yumiko, in the background, could barely hold in her laughter at the stunned look on the youngest Echizen's face. "'Kaa-san, are you quite alright?"_

"_Of course I'm alright, you silly girl!" Rinko huffed indignantly. "Can't a mother express her happiness that her daughter has finally come out of her shell?" She turned to Yumiko in question._

_Between giggles, her daughter-in-law reassured her she could, and much to Reiko's displeasure, added. "Rei-chan is happier nowadays. Especially when she's messaging."_

She had returned to her room highly embarrassed and irritated, Reiko recalled. And when Seiichi had called, she had promptly snapped at him. In retrospect, it wasn't the nicest thing to do and hardly his fault. Not to mention her phrasing left much to be desired.

"_It's so annoying that they keep saying things like that, Seiichi-san! Sometimes, I wish it would all just go back to before they started getting weird ideas!" Reiko grumbled into the phone, flopping on her bed, one hand in Karupin's fur for comfort._

_To her surprise, he had gone quiet before what she had come to recognize as his dangerous tone chillingly emitted from her phone. "Would you rather we went back to being just rivals then, Echizen-san?"_

It had been, surprisingly, an easy argument to win, she reflected. And while the second part hardly applied to her, since Seiichi was too _nice_ to give her any cause to lose her temper, except for the teasing he managed to acquire for her that was hardly his fault… Well, Reiko couldn't help but wonder if how easily he had been placated had anything to do with the article. Even though it was a girls' magazine, shouldn't it be applicable both ways?

"_#8: Everything reminds you of him, so you're always so out of it because you're always thinking of him"_

'_Word Association' had taken over Reiko's instant messaging conversations that evening. She was supposed to be discussing the latest essay in Japanese History with Misaki and Oshitari, but Kevin had come online and she had gotten sidetracked by the conversations she was having via instant messaging and text messaging. By the time her schoolmates had gotten her attention again, it was a little too late to do any proper work._

_Kevin had proposed 'Word Association.'_

_It killed time while providing laughter and somehow made people closer, understanding just how strange one another's minds could get. This round had begun with some odd film she didn't recognize, courtesy of Misaki_.

Oshitari: _Bollywood?_

Kevin: _Hollywood! (Didn't know you were into such things, Oshitari-san)_

_Reiko took one look at the diva-filled location and typed in one word_:Monkey

Misaki: _Keigo (Honestly, Rei?)_

Oshitari: _Diva (I'd think you were hung up on him if I didn't know better, Echizen)_

Kevin: _Purple (Since diva automatically reminds me of Atobe)_

_She was semi-distracted by messaging Seiichi on her phone and thus missed the many calls for her attention until a while later. Already sleepy, Reiko had just typed the first word that came to mind: _Eyes _before dozing off, already going into off-tangents subconsciously from there._

_The others didn't even bother continuing the game in their surprise._

Oshitari: _I can honestly say I have no clue where that came from. Misaki? Smith-san?_

Misaki: _I think I do, Yuushi! ~ Her mind is just… elsewhere_

Kevin: _Somehow, I'm not sure if I want to know._

She had woken up the next morning to identical messages from Misaki and Oshitari: _We apologize for intruding on your couple-time last night, Rei-chan/Echizen-chan, but please do try to keep your head away from the clouds for now – we still have to finish that essay in a few days' time._ The memory of their knowing looks that had continued perpetually for the next week or so still made her cringe.

"_#9: The whole time you were reading this, you were thinking of one particular person."_

She stared at it for a moment in disbelief before feeling like hurling the magazine at the nearest wall. This was getting _ridiculous_. Of course she was thinking of one particular person, considering Misaki and Oshitari and hell, _everyone_ had been teasing her about him perpetually! Was she supposed to read it and think of no one? Her first reaction upon seeing the title had been Misaki was teasing, again. And Misaki had only known her long enough to tease her about Seiichi, after all!

Convinced, she skipped to the next one, ignoring the heat she felt on her cheeks.

"_#10: And you were so busy thinking of him that you didn't realize #6 was missing."_

_Crap_. She mentally cursed in reflexive English, doubling back to check to see that there was indeed no _#6_ in the article. Mortified, she almost wished for a hole to open in the ground to swallow her whole.

"There's no need to be embarrassed by the truth, Reiko-chan!" Misaki's singsong voice came from the doorway of her 'primping suite' casually dressed in lounging clothes. "Even though I have to say I told you so!"

Reiko decided that she really wanted a hole to open in the ground and swallow her whole. It was better than this humiliation. For all she knew, the magazine was bogus! Half of it was common sense… right? "I'll be going to shower now, senpai. And we probably can eat dinner once you're done attacking me. "

That said, she escaped past Misaki nimbly into the bathroom.

* * *

"It's been a while since we actually ate outside school, just the four of us." Oshitari commented, sharing a meaningful looking with Misaki midway into their meal that was missed by the cousins.

Atobe and Oshitari had arrived earlier than expected, their meeting having ended prematurely when some club or other had an emergency. With their presence, Reiko was able to delegate work while Misaki attacked her hair. Since it was _hair_, she was actually able to do some work herself. While some would have argued that their work distribution was rather uneven – Reiko and Oshitari did most of the legwork – they would have disagreed. Atobe had the expertise that came from living there for a good part of his childhood, while Misaki had a very good eye for detail. Their proofing therefore was of greater value, so the other two chose to defer to it.

All fast workers, they had completed their half-done project by the time the servants came up to call them for dinner, in time to save Reiko from Misaki's suggestion of a manicure.

Unfortunately, it wouldn't save her from teasing, apparently. "Well, Reiko-chan has been too busy for us, after all!" Misaki turned sad eyes on the other girl in their company before looking at Atobe. "Don't you think, Keigo?"

"Ore-sama would have to agree." Atobe replied, ignoring the glare that was sent his way from his baby cousin. "She's always rushing off on weekends to meet someone or other."

Reiko glared harder at her cousin. "I go _home_, you Monkey King!"

"Should I mention your outing at the club with Yukimura, Marui, Niou and Kirihara the Saturday before last? And then when I announced trainings were to take place on Saturdays as well, you went out with him on Sunday instead?" Atobe raised the infamous eyebrow at her. "You hardly have spare time for anyone anymore, Rei."

To his surprise, and apprehension, she merely returned his raised brow. In that moment, the other occupants of the room could see the resemblance between the cousins. It was shattered, though, when Reiko turned to Oshitari with a mischievous smirk playing on her lips. "Well, I find the time to spare for my friends at least. You, Kei… Cousin mine, you are hopeless. You've driven Misaki-senpai quite insane with your lack of attention."

"I would have to testify to the fact, Misaki." Oshitari drawled, to the heiress's indignation. "You have been rather unlike yourself since Saturday training was imposed. You seem to spend an inordinate time with Atobe."

Reiko smirked at the darkening cheeks of both her cousin and senpai. "And not to mention both of you keep taking time out of your schedules to see each other but don't do that for anyone else!"

"Rei…" Atobe's tone was dangerous.

She exchanged a look with Oshitari. In mutual agreement, they simultaneously escaped the dining room, Atobe and Misaki hot on their heels, laughter ringing the halls of the Nakamura estate.

* * *

Later that night (or rather, early morning), Reiko sat hugging her knees on Misaki's huge bed. Her senpai had finally fallen asleep on her belly, hands over the edge of the bed, while waiting of her nail polish to dry. She looked down at her toes in amusement: the metallic purplish-blue shade matched Misaki's fingernails.

She'd declined the manicure, deeming it a waste when it would do nothing but get chipped on the court anyway but couldn't in courtesy deny her senpai the pedicure. The part where she enjoyed being pampered, she neatly compartmentalized and ignored. Though looking at them made her feel, oddly enough, more attractive and female.

She looked at them again appreciatively and caught, out of the corner of her eye, sight of a line in the magazine she had been reading earlier. As destiny would have it, Misaki had been looking at the same page she referred Reiko to when she'd fallen asleep. In fine print below the ten was a line of text:

"_The Missing #6: Commitment is actually starting to sound like something you could stand."_

Sitting there in the silence of night, with no one to disturb and tease, Reiko allowed herself to wonder.

If the magazine wasn't bogus (and she had a hard time believing that because well, it was _pink!_), and if Misaki was honestly onto something when she said that their relationship was just a typical friendly rivalry one… Reiko surprised herself when she realized the idea didn't revolt her as much as she expected, considering her long aversion to such things.

_Maybe the magazine was really onto something_… She considered, even as she curled up beside Misaki, eyes falling shut in sleep.

**

* * *

A/N: **Oh, denial. Which, Reiko needs to admit soon, isn't the only river in Egypt. She's on the way there, but she really needs to get there soon.

Before I bash my head against something. Hard.

Writing blush and all the metaphors and figurative speech I think for it is _killing_ me. So in order to cut down to the chase, and stop torturing myself and whoever who is reading this and thinking _when the heck are they going to get together already_, I basically did the clichéd time skip and flashback combination in this chapter. Longer chapters seem to be becoming the norm for me.

Anyhow, do let me know what you think since this whole jumping around in time isn't quite my style. I.e.? Please REVIEW!

-iirse


	14. XII V: Interlude: Girls Night In

**A/N:** This is basically the part just before the end of the last chapter. I wanted to write the whole project part between Oshitari, Atobe, Reiko and Misaki but blah, that would have been really long and I wanted a more "girl talk" oriented chapter, since Reiko is practically always surrounded by guys. And okay, I was just sick of writing guys all the time, and I wanted to indulge in some girly-ness. Hope you enjoy and please R&R! -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 12.5 – **_**Interlude: Girls Night In**_

"For the last time, Kei, _purple_ isn't necessary to make our project reflect England!" Reiko's voice hit a particularly high pitch in her frustration, causing both Misaki and Oshitari to wince.

Unfortunately, it didn't have the desired effect on the stubborn Atobe heir. "Of course it is. England is where ore-sama learnt to appreciate the beauty of the color purple."

"And this has to do with Tudor England _how_?" Reiko demanded. "I don't _care_ how unoriginal you think green and white is, at least it makes more sense than kami-forsaken purple!"

As the cousins continued arguing over the color scheme for a section of their presentation, Misaki and Oshitari exchanged resigned looks. "I have to agree with Reiko-chan, Yuushi, but really. Arguing about color schemes for the Tudor England slides that are only ten percent of our whole presentation?" Misaki shook her head, at a loss.

"That's because the slides must be perfect, ahn." Atobe replied, neatly interrupting whatever Reiko had been saying to defend himself to Misaki.

"And green and white would be damned perfect, Kei, if you would just shut up and let me do it." Reiko retorted, wresting control of the laptop from him and doing precisely that, then clinging to it like a succubus so that he couldn't really snatch it from her.

Atobe recognizing his loss didn't mean he would let it go easily though. He raised his eyes to the ceiling with a mock-long suffering expression. "However does Yukimura puts up with you, I wonder!"

Annoyed, Reiko didn't think before she spoke and walked right into the trap. "Seiichi-san doesn't _have_ to because he _doesn't_ have disagreements with me over such inane details." Then she slapped a hand over her mouth, realizing just what she had said. "Damn it!"

"Seems like a match made in heaven then, Echizen-chan." Oshitari smoothly interjected, to the room's other occupants' amusement.

To Reiko's horror, her cousin actually went into cahoots with Oshitari to pick on her. "Definitely, considering how Rei can put him above ore-sama. She is cleared deluded." He flipped his hair in disdain.

Oshitari shot her a look that she just knew meant that there would be hell to pay once he opened his mouth. Reiko immediately cut her eyes to Misaki. I'd do _anything_ if you get them out of here, her eyes promised. Laughing, Misaki rose, herding them towards the door of her suite. "Come on, shounen-tachi, leave the poor girl alone. Besides, if you tease her, they might stop and then what is there to tease about anymore?" She added conspiratorially at the door, before shoving them out. "I won't see you out, then! See you on Monday!"

Turning back into the room, Nakamura Misaki smiled perfectly angelically at Echizen Reiko.

* * *

Less than an hour later, Reiko was regretting her unspoken promise. Misaki had laid down the rules once she was sure the boys were out of earshot – which was pretty soon, since the suite was almost soundproof. No extreme complaining, no superfluous protests, no falling asleep and tuning out, and absolutely no use of her phone. Essentially, Reiko was to listen to Misaki.

No, the handy device had been confiscated by the elder girl, who proclaimed that this was a girl's night, and it was going to stay that way, and no boy was going to intrude. So unless Reiko was telling her that Rikkaidai's captain was a cross dresser, Misaki had leveled a _look_ at the choking Reiko, their messaging was disallowed. Reiko was actually highly tempted, except that she knew that Misaki would spin a yarn from it and spread it and Seiichi would have her head, regardless of whether she was his only tennis challenge or not.

So here she was, stuck in feminine machinations and without any escape at that.

"Come on, Reiko-chan! Relax! This is supposed to be relaxing." Misaki called from across the room in the other tub. Yes, Misaki's 'primping suite' bathroom had two tubs. Reiko had no idea why, except that she was thankful she didn't have to share. The bubbles were soothing, she supposed, as were the hands of the maid that Misaki had called up to her suite to give them a thorough massage and then… Well, Reiko didn't want to know.

But she had to grudgingly admit that the scalp massage worked in the shampoo well, and it felt just a step from heavenly. If only she had her phone to crack jokes at how odd it was for her to be so girly. Jokes that Misaki would no doubt protest, so she couldn't voice them.

"Echizen-sama, if you would dunk your head please?" The maid's soft insistent voice drew her from her reverie.

When she surfaced to swipe soapy water from her eyes, allowing the maid to continue her ministrations, Reiko was met with Misaki's teasing eyes from across the room. "I told you it was good! Now what were you thinking of?"

Almost immediately, Reiko colored. It was awkward, now that she thought about it, to be thinking of Seiichi while… Well, while essentially going through what was essentially a very long bathing routine. Very awkward. Kami knew what Misaki would say if she knew.

Unfortunately, all it took was that blush for Misaki to know. "Now we have your mind on the right track!" The senior girl's smile was more like a Cheshire grin right now. "Now, my contacts in Rikkai tell me that his fan girls can rival Yuushi's. Of course, no one has yet to beat your dear cousin, but to rival Yuushi is rather high on the count."

"There's a difference?" Reiko raised an eyebrow at her. They were just all public nuisances anyway.

She voiced the thought to be shot down. "Of course there is a difference! They're competition now, Reiko-chan!"

Her answer had Misaki wondering just what had gone wrong with her upbringing. Had Misaki met the Echizens, the answer would have been obvious. Echizen Nanjiroh was what had gone wrong. He had immersed his children in tennis from the cradle. Reiko's 'default setting' was tennis oriented. "Last I checked, Misaki-senpai, fan girls are hopeless at playing the sport, much less be allowed to play in the boys' tournament. I doubt I'll be seeing them in a match anytime soon. Or in a million years, even."

"Reiko…" Misaki sighed, raising her eyes to give the ceiling (and kami-sama) a long-suffering look. "I meant in competition for his… affection. Like to be his girlfriend."

Instantly, the younger girl pulled away from the maid to dunk her head back into the water. An awkward silence prevailed, only to be broken by the nervous maid. "Ojou-sama? Echizen-sama?"

"I'm fine." Reiko resurfaced, leaning back again. "Misaki-senpai, you're out of your mind! Whoever said anything about _that_ sort of competition, anyway?"

Misaki gave an unladylike shrug, much to the chagrin of her maid massaging her shoulders if her slight sigh of annoyance was anything to go by. "Your blush did. That and the fact that you actually read the whole article that I gave you. Not to mention you were blushing when I came out."

Reiko spluttered, at a temporary loss for words. When she found her tongue again, the words came out in a torrent that amused her senpai to no end. "I had nothing to do! There was nothing better to do! It was a rigged article anyway. And a ridiculous one! And I don't blush!"

"Look at the mirror now and tell me that you don't blush, Reiko-chan!" Misaki retorted, her voice happily singsong. "And you were holding your phone enough to message Yuushi at number five, right? I'd say you had better things to do such as message _someone_ if you really wanted something to do. More like you were curious!"

_Damn that Oshitari_, Reiko cursed. Somewhere out there, Yuushi sneezed over suddenly on his favorite novel and cursed. "Seiichi-san was in the hospital for a check-up, Misaki-senpai! There's no way his phone could be used to begin with, so there!"

"Aw, it's so cute that you know each other's schedules!" Misaki cooed, much to Reiko's chagrin. "I bet you messaged him to ask him how it went as soon as you knew it was over too!"

"Did not!" Reiko felt like sticking out her tongue at winning that point, and did so. "I only messaged him after you and Kei stopped chasing me and Oshitari, too bad!"

Misaki all but squealed. "But you messaged him! That's just so cute!"

"Senpai… My ears… Please…" Reiko was on the verge of stuff her fingers in to block out the high-pitched noises of Misaki's blathering.

That was until she heard something about 'wedding' and 'dresses' and 'children.' "Misaki-senpai!"

To her credit and Reiko's dismay, Misaki didn't even blink. "Of course, Reiko-chan, thank you for reminding me, none of that would happen if we didn't make sure that you will outshine your competition. So just listen to me, hm?"

Groaning, Reiko ignored the heat she felt on her face, and really did put her fingers into her ears and dunked herself back into the water, hoping that when she came out to breathe, it would all be a bad dream.

* * *

"What do you think?" Misaki asked, twirling around in a deep crimson dress, her feet encased in black and gold six-inch heels that matched her bag and long earrings perfectly.

Reiko looked up from her hands to her host, nodding in what would have been taken as approval, except that Misaki chose to walk over and sit down. Odd. The elder girl had seemed an endless fountain of energy, and hadn't sat since they finished their bath, massage and masks. Misaki would have gone for the full sauna and whatnot, had Reiko not reminded her they did need their sleep.

"Reiko-chan." The lack of a lilt to her name sent warning bells to her head, and the addressed really looked at the other girl. "I know you aren't really girly, but hey, that's what I'm for. I just want an opinion, okay? And try to have some fun. I'm not saying you have to dress like me to snag him. Then he must as well be chasing me – because then, he's after you, not me." Her tone softened. "Just be you, but try to be more open. I'm sure I'm not the only one suggesting this."

Reiko considered this, head canted to a side. It was true that Rinko and Yumiko, not to mention Ryoko-baa-san had been after her to dress like a girl, not a small effeminate boy, to use her aunt's words. Wordlessly, she nodded.

Misaki's pretty face shone with a brilliant smile. Reiko thought for a moment that maybe she and Oshitari were on the wrong track. Surely Kei would have noticed something this priceless before him, right? "Now tell me what you think of this. Is the color right? Or does it make me look like a tea-stained sheet of paper."

"Tea-stained papers look lovely, ojou-sama." The maid waiting for Misaki's next instructions as to what dress to take out pointed out.

Reiko raised the infamous eyebrow. "Dark enough, a dress of that color would be nice – when you're less bubbly. The color's probably only second to black, Misaki-senpai. But a more…" She moved her hands in an expansive gesture, unable to find a proper word. "Flare sort of dress, would suit you better, I think."

"Accessories, shoes, bag?" Misaki asked.

Reiko shrugged, not really having much opinion on that. They seemed to go, and she told her senpai as much. "It matches the detailing of that dress though." She pointed to one she saw peeking out of the wardrobe.

Immediately, the maid took it out, handing it to Misaki who whisked herself back into her changing room. Less than five minutes later, she was out and had jumped onto Reiko to hug her, much like what Mukahi did to Oshitari and what Kikumaru-senpai used to do back in Seigaku. "Reiko-chan you found me the _perfect_ outfit for the party! I'm so happy! Domo arigatou gozaimasu!"

Reiko blinked at the long formal gesture of thanks. She wasn't aware it meant so much to her senpai. But then, Misaki was much like other girls that placed much weight on clothes. Unlike her, who just threw the task of shopping to Oshitari. "What party?" She asked, more for courtesy's sake than anything.

"The one you're holding for Atobe-sama, silly!" Misaki swatted at her lightly. "Oh! I nearly forgot! I wanted you to try some things!" She turned to her maid, listing off brand names, years, seasons and colors that befuddled Reiko. Was that how Misaki catalogued the arsenal of clothing she had? A deep green dress was shoved into her hands within moments, before she was shoved into the dressing room.

Misaki only muttered, "Perfect color" before handing her another dress, this time in unfaltering yellow, and pushing her back in. Looking at it, and the black belt that was cinched around the waist for the dress, she could almost see herself in Rikkaidai colors. _Seiichi's colors_, her traitorous mind whispered. Stamping down the thought, she exited the room. Misaki took one look and made a face.

"Bad color, decent cut. Could do better." She gave her another dress and the process continued.

It wasn't till she tried a dress in white that Misaki approved that she managed to get a word edgewise. "Misaki-senpai, just why are you doing this?"

The heiress looked at her, startled. "Your dress, of course. My perusal of your wardrobe at Keigo's told me you probably don't have any attire for the party. I know you delegated Yuushi to the task, but he asked me to go with him. Knowing him, it'll be black and sleek."

"But that works." Reiko pointed out.

Misaki rolled her eyes. "And it's also boring. Besides, Rikkaidai will probably be there in greater numbers this year since the hostess is such good friends with so many of them, no? Dress to impress, make him feel like he has to work for it, Reiko-chan!"

It was getting old, Misaki decided, when a blush immediately colored her kohai's cheeks. "The party's still ages away!" She protested.

"And you've been so busy, and will be busier now that prefectural matches are coming up, and then after that, regionals." The elder girl pointed out. "I'm just getting a feel of what color and style would suit best. A stylist can easily take care of your hair and makeup – you take exceptionally good care of your hair so that's a non-issue. Given all your tennis, you probably can balance in heels – kami knows Keigo can – so that again, doesn't bother me. It's just what exactly to get for you that isn't Yuushi's normal boring style."

Reiko looked skeptical at her eye roll. "Isn't it called classic?"

"Classic. Old-fashioned. Boring." Misaki listed. "Same difference." She turned back to the dress. "So, that green from the French winter collection three years back, and something like this cut… Knee length, one shouldered. Definitely waist, maybe with some detail there? You're _tiny_. And then for it to flow out, with some flare. I'm thinking gold heels…"

"And make me look like I'm dressed to match the color scheme?" The younger heiress demanded. "Geez."

Misaki looked taken aback for a moment. "Very true, Reiko-chan! You have hope, you know. But with me and Yuushi? You're going to knock his socks off."

"And deal with a very grumpy anuie and oyaji." She muttered, even as Misaki finished planning and turned to her maid to give some other rapid fire instruction.

* * *

Misaki had finally tired of trying on combination after combination – and making Reiko try them, though the elder girl was taller than her and so her clothes didn't really fit right. Reiko had lost track of time a long time ago, and allowed herself to be dragged along with Misaki's energy. She felt sorry for the maids though. While they didn't really have to wake up early tomorrow – Keigo had excused her from practice and Misaki was completely free – the maids would have to. It made her feel slightly guilty. Even at the Atobes', she didn't keep hours this late and required the servants to serve her till that time.

When she put the question to the maid that had been following her around that night, though, the answer surprised her. "Ah, iie, Echizen-sama. Ojou-sama lets us know in advance when she plans such things so the housekeeper gives us later shifts or night shifts before and after."

"Night shifts?" Reiko canted her head, confused. She had been under the impression the whole house slept.

"Hai," The maid nodded. "Sometimes ojou-sama might require something in the middle of the night, or anyone in the house, for that matter. That's what the night shifts are for."

The sheer expense of such a household, Reiko remembered, was a lot. Well, this was certainly a reminder, she nodded her thanks to the maid as she set down the hot chocolate and cookies that Misaki had requested. She was thankful that her mother had chosen to marry outside the elite circle. If such was the life she would have had, no doubt she, anuie and her oyaji would have long gone insane.

"So." Misaki sat herself down on the opposite armchair in her bedroom, reaching for a cookie. "I was thinking of asking for a manicure and pedicure done. We should do them in matching colors, just for fun! The whole routine, of course, not just the nail painting. Being pampered like that just makes you feel pretty and female and… Well, you know!"

Reiko wanted to ask just what should she know, but she sort of knew what Misaki meant. As much as she didn't do this whole pampering routine on a regular basis (in fact, she only did when some female in her family forced her to), she had to admit giving in from the start and thus enjoying it felt good. There was just something to the feeling of being cared for, of caring for yourself, which felt nice. It was vanity, and attending to her vanity made her feel slightly prettier, and yes, she had to admit that feeling female was nice for a change.

But the manicure… She looked ruefully at her hands, at callouses formed from years of playing tennis – since her oyaji thought she could hold a racquet actually. There was little point in a manicure and moisturizer to soften them. The polish would chip away. She pointed that out to Misaki, who shook her head.

"You can forgo the polish then, Reiko-chan." She agreed, albeit grudgingly. "But you _will_ soak and moisturize those hands and then let them do the cuticle and buffing. And you get the full routine on your feet. I know I can't ask you to moisturize daily until they're soft because it'll be hell for you to play but… Well, pampering is nice, you know?"

Reiko nodded in acquiesce, still holding her cup of hot chocolate, and allowed her feet to be raised, then put into a shallow basin of warm water. The other maid performed the same treatment for Misaki.

They sat in a comfortable silence, the easy pampering almost lulling Reiko to sleep before Misaki's voice broke through her subconscious. "Reiko-chan? Why do you and Yuushi always say that there's something going on between Keigo and I?"

"I –" Reiko yawned, shooting Misaki an apologetic look. "Gomen. I don't know, actually. Oshitari mentioned it once, and then when I looked at it, it's sort of true. He treats you the way he treats me, only a lot nicer. Without all the 'brat' comments and all that that comes with being a cousin, not a close friend. And you're the only girl he'll make time for outside of tennis and family."

"We're old friends that get along well." Misaki pointed out.

Reiko shrugged. "I think what Oshitari and I said it was more of you and Kei being old friends that complement each other."

"But if you wanted, the same could be said of you and Yukimura-san, can't it?" Misaki pressed, honestly curious. "Minus the part on old friends. You love disparaging people, he's too nice to and chooses to do it discreetly. He can apologize for you and then still understand you after that."

Luckily for her, Reiko could see the honesty, and see Misaki wasn't just teasing as always. "We're just friendly rivals, Misaki-senpai. I don't understand why you all keep insisting otherwise."

"A friend would order his teammates to run laps for a good hour just for standing too close to you and scaring you?" Misaki questioned, having pried that story out of her earlier that week.

Reiko shrugged. "Yagyuu-san said it was normal."

"Yagyuu-san said it was normal when it came to Kirihara-san. Kirihara-san has been in Rikkaidai for much longer than you and Yukimura-san have starting being friendly rivals rather than just plain rivals." Misaki pointed out. "Not to mention he's the baby of their team. You aren't nearly as childish as him. And for all that Niou-san scared you, it hardly disrupted any peace definitely. It sounds more like jealousy to me."

"Jealousy of what?" Reiko was truly baffled. Just what was there to be jealous of?

Misaki shrugged. "That Niou-san was in close proximity to you? That he couldn't do that because it just wasn't his way, but he wished he could?" She suggested.

"Look, Reiko-chan." Misaki sighed. "I'm not experienced in this at _all_, so this is just guesswork. But from what I know of Rikkaidai, they are ridiculously disciplined and strict. Yet with you, you get away with nearly anything. You said it yourself that he gets over his anger fast when it comes to you." Reiko winced in memory that she had been upset enough to tell Misaki in the hopes that she would just _lay off_. "For someone capable of sadism like your Syuu-nii, as you tell it since I've never met Fuji-san… Well, it says a lot.

"It's like he cares more about you that it overrides his normal behavior to some extent." Misaki smiled wistfully. "It's sweet, really. And really far from friendly rivals. Think about it."

Having made her point, Misaki turned back to the maid to tell her which color she wanted, and instructed the other to take the other bottle. Why she had two was another point of befuddlement for Reiko, the younger girl thought absently, her mind elsewhere. When she realized Misaki still had expectant eyes on her, she shook herself. "I will, Misaki-senpai. Now since you're so insistent that you and Kei have nothing on, read that magazine you tossed at me."

* * *

The next morning, Misaki woke up to read the last line of the magazine that had caught Reiko's eye the night before. She blushed, took one look at the giggling Princess, and glared. "This doesn't leave the room, Reiko. Not even through your phone. This magazine is bogus…"

After she had stalked out of the door, Reiko smiled to herself ever so slightly. "Maybe it is, maybe it isn't, Misaki-senpai. I think it is for you, but I'm not sure about me."

* * *

**A/N: **I'm actually sort of sad that this chapter/"mini"-chapter didn't skyrocket the word count to near 5000. If anything, I was expecting it. But I really didn't want to rehash the magazine scene. I nearly fried my brain writing it from Reiko's perspective and it made up the bulk of the chapter. Doing it for Misaki, no matter how much shorter, would have killed me. Plus repetition is bleh. Repeating blush and all its euphemisms is annoying me already. I really do need to move it along, before I shoot the fic for annoying me.

Next chapter I guess!

Oh, and reviews feed my starving artist mind. Especially those with suggestions that skew my plot even more and give me more bunnies to play with. So please R&R! See you next Saturday!

-iirse


	15. XIII: Dinners with a Twist

**A/N:** If anyone who has this on alert got any multiple stuff, I apologize (not sure how alerts work 'cuz I don't use them) – I was going over earlier chapters and revising them a little. It's just minor changes on the first 8 chapters or so. I was rereading it and it sounded off. I try to update and do the revisions on the same day so people don't get their hopes up for nothing. Been on the receiving end too many times. It sucks.

Anyhow, I know this is ridiculously late and I don't have much of an excuse except for the fact that I got stuck. I knew what I wanted to happen, but the scene just refused to be written. I hope this significant plot development chapter makes up for it. Please R&R! -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 13 – **_**Dinners with a Twist**_

When Echizen Rinko _née_Takeuchi practically skipped into their home late from work, she turned quite a few heads. Nanjiroh wondered just what had gotten into her. Typically, a late day of work meant a tired Rinko that was in no mood to deal with any nonsense. They all kept out of her hair then. She was nearly as bad as Reiko on PMS.

But this.

This was completely out of the ordinary. Surely it had caught more than _his_ attention.

Judging from the look on his son's face, it had. And it irked him to think of any other male attention his wife might have gotten with her unusually levity, and whose heads she might have turned. For all that her daughter was in her teens, his wife was well-preserved for her age – kami forbid it mentioned in her earshot, though. Of course, it didn't occur to him that Rinko drove rather than take public transport since other methods such as bicycles were out of the question for a professional job like hers. One could hardly ride a bicycle in her typical office wear, after all. His minor jealousy was therefore ridiculously irrational, but it still led him to sneak around the living room to eavesdrop on his wife and daughter-in-law in the kitchen.

Watching his father's antics, Ryoga sighed and reached for his phone. _Chibisuke, oyaji's eavesdropping on 'kaa-san again. Up to watch the fireworks?_

* * *

"Yumiko-chan!" Rinko sang as she entered the kitchen. "Guess who I saw today?"

Her daughter-in-law turned around from her preparation of dinner to greet her. "Okaeri, 'kaa-san. You are in an exceptionally good mood today, even taking into account the extremely long weekend."

"You would be too, Yumiko-chan, if you were me right now." Rinko sighed happily, at the reminder that though it was only Wednesday, she had another four days before work resumed. "What's for dinner?"

Yumiko smiled, pausing from her preparation. Friday dinners – or whichever day happened to be the last working day of the week – were Yumiko's self-imposed charge. Rinko didn't bother disputing that, since she knew full well that she tended to control the preparation of their Sunday family dinners with an iron fist. "I doubt you're really interested in dinner, 'kaa-san."

The elder woman beamed. "True. I'm more interested in what I learnt today." She spun from the counter to face her daughter-in-law. "Guess who happened to be my last appointment of the day, Yumiko?"

"There are too many prominent names to guess, 'kaa-san!" Yumiko protested. For all that Syuusuke and Yuuta believed that she was scarily psychic, she had her limits. She would guess someone associated with Reiko, but her sister-in-law was in Hyotei now where she rubbed elbows with the children of many of her mother's clients.

Rinko luckily didn't expect her to guess. "My last appointment was Isa Shinju regarding some legal documents for her company."

"She isn't that high up the elite ladder, right?" Yumiko commented, wondering just why her mother-in-law brought up this particular woman. "I don't recall Reiko ever mentioning any Isa in Hyotei."

"Reiko is no social butterfly, Yumiko." Rinko chided lightly. "But no, the family isn't as well off as Ryoko-nee-san's and their associates, but they own a significant part of certain minor international chains so they can afford me. This deal was actually a fairly big one for the company."

The rhythmic chopping of vegetables stopped just then and Yumiko turned to face Rinko. "Don't big deals normally involve drinks after the meeting? You normally get back so late that 'tou-san gets rather… Antsy."

"Antsy is an understatement, Yumiko-chan! I know how bad Nanjiroh can get." Rinko laughed at the memory of her husband in his monk garb sputtering about how other men would steal away 'his Rin-chan'. It happened so much that it was routine already. "Today was a post-deal meeting, just to tie up loose ends. Isa-san was the last of her party to leave Tokyo, choosing to stay slightly longer. I was late because we went for coffee rather than alcoholic drinks."

Honestly, Yumiko was getting confused. How was coffee with a client making the other woman so ecstatic? She told Rinko was much.

Her mother-in-law only laughed. "Sorry, Yumiko-chan! It's just that you know how when women get together: we end up talking about our children and families. So there I was bemoaning the fact that though my son has settled down with a perfectly nice girl, my baby daughter has given me no hope of grandchildren – though I had false hope a short while ago, and what a nice boy he seemed to be too! And speak of coincidences; she had the same problem with her son."

"And the times coincided too nicely, didn't they?" Yumiko finished knowingly, turning back to her chopping.

"How did you know?" Rinko exclaimed. "I'm starting to believe Syuusuke and Yuuta that you're psychic, Yumiko!"

The younger woman smiled. "Syuusuke and Reiko found out about Ryoga and me in much the same way. I think I can piece the rest together already. Isa-san goes by her maiden name and is Yukimura-san's mother. And the two of you took your time at the café, bonding over coffee and plotting how to get your children together."

"Psychic for sure, Yumiko." Rinko shivered inwardly at how eerily accurate the other was. "But yes, we did, though you needn't call it plotting. We're just helping them along. Isa-san told me she believes that her son would ask our Reiko out eventually, but she had smacked tradition into his head so he wouldn't do it without asking my permission first."

Yumiko sighed. "And Reiko avoids bringing male friends home because of 'tou-san's and Ryoga's behavior." _Not to mention her recent estrangement from Syuusuke that has her avoiding home like the plague._

"Exactly the problem!" Rinko sighed as well, helping Yumiko take out the necessary kitchen cutlery. "We _need_ to orchestrate something or my baby girl will end up alone, knowing her!"

Her drama was picked up by a wail outside the door.

"My baby girl will not be violated by that _thing_ that isn't good enough for her! Ryoga! Where's your sister! We must hide her!" Nanjiroh's voice rose in pitch till it was almost painful to hear. Yumiko thought she detected suppressed laughter under her father-in-law's loud voice. Peering out into the living room proved her right: her husband was burying his face into a cushion in the hopes of suppressing his howls of laughter.

He gave up when Rinko entered the room, furious. "Which part of 'private conversation,' do you _not_ understand, Nanjiroh?" And proceeded to threaten to burn his stash of porn.

Giggling, Yumiko gave in and joined Ryoga on the floor to watch the scene, reading his text message over his shoulder. _'Kaa-san's burning the porn, chibi! Don't you wish you were here? Too bad it means that my dinner is going to be late. Oh well, I have Yumi. Jaa!_

* * *

Yawning, Echizen Reiko nearly stumbled into her cousin when Atobe stopped abruptly in the kitchen entrance, drawing a string of insults from her too fluent tongue. She had been depending on her cousin to lead them from the courts on the estate where the team had been training since she was focused on messaging – the last two days had been holidays and so they chose to monopolize it to practice for the prefectural tournament – to the kitchens. The staff was largely on leave at Atobe Keisuke's behest, leaving his only heir and his niece to their own devices for that evening's meal.

"What are you planning to do for ore-sama's meal, ahn?" The arrogant diva prompted the second his cousin ceased cursing.

Reiko glared at him. Unfortunately, the glare had been taught to her by him when they were children. In other words? It didn't work at all. "_We_ are cooking." She stressed the pronoun.

"We burn water, Rei-chan." Atobe pointed out, deadpan. "And you hate Western food."

She rolled her eyes at him. "Do you take me for an idiot, Kei? Don't answer that. I got the maids to leave food that requires _minimal_ cooking. Mada mada…"

Laid on the main preparation table, simply enough, was an electric kettle, some noodles and assorted foodstuff for flavoring. Little did the cousins foresee the disaster they were about to create.

Atobe glared at his placidly smirking cousin. Reiko sat on the only clean and dry kitchen countertop at the other side of the massive kitchen, swinging her legs while pointing. "No, Kei, your _other_ left! Oh wait, that's your right, my left. Sorry! I think I see a shrimp there…"

"I'll put a shrimp there!" Atobe threw down the cleaning cloth in aggravation, advancing towards her, icy aura emanating. Too bad for him, Reiko was too accustomed to it and she knew he would never hurt her. She was his baby cousin, after all.

His baby cousin that took advantage of the knowledge she had of what he would and wouldn't do. "I'm not a shrimp, Kei! You're just fat. Nya!" She stuck out her tongue at him. "Besides, I won! You're mainly cleaning your mess!"

"You cheated!" Atobe accused, his voice very much a whine.

Reiko rolled her eyes, still smirking. "You're whining, Kei-_chan_."

"Am not!"

"And you're acting like a child." She would have called him a sore loser too, and was considering linking that to his nemesis to piss him off into doing the cleaning. Then again, the last time she did that, he went into full rant-mode and lost their food fight because he just stood there declaiming…

* * *

Reiko stood at the stove, waiting for the water to boil in the electric kettle on the nearest countertop. When she suddenly made a sound of disgust, her cousin turned to her questioningly. "Catching up on my messages, since you confiscated my phone for the past few days, Kei. Anuie's being gross and throwing innuendo at me. I don't need to know when he's thinking of 'nee-chan like that!" Reiko answered the unspoken question.

Atobe mirrored her disgust. "For all that he is ore-sama's cousin; he disgusts ore-sama nonetheless. But surely he did not only message you for that purpose?" He nodded to the phone she was holding while staring absently at the kettle. "And I confiscated your phone or else you would have spent the whole two days doing nothing but messaging Yukimura."

"Anuie'd be a dead man if that were the case." Reiko muttered darkly, conveniently not hearing the later part of his answer. Or maybe not, Atobe thought, noticing a very slight pinking of his cousin's cheeks. "No, oyaji was eavesdropping on 'kaa-san again and started screaming when what he heard distressed him. Kami-sama knows what he heard – the man overreacts over every little thing just like you… Are you sure you're related to me by my mother not my father?"

Atobe merely arched an eyebrow at her and reminded her exactly why they were cousins on their maternal side, distracted from thoughts of teasing.

"Fine." She groused. "But you two really overreact. He freaked out when Kev called me last weekend, you know. Even though he _knows_ full well that we've kept in touch since the Goodwill Games years ago!"

Her cousin's other eyebrow joined its fellow. "As far as I know, Smith won't risk calling unless it were dire. He knows Nan-jii-san's temperament too well."

If it were even possible, the diva's eyebrows would have climbed into his hairline at his cousin's darkening blush and her muttered answer. "I may have… forgotten to reply his letter."

"Care to enunciate and elucidate, cousin mine?" He teased.

She glared, before turning around to check on the kettle. "The vegetables better be washed by the time I want them, Kei. Kev sent me a letter, we promised to stay in touch and all. I forgot to reply what with all the drama and tennis." She poured out water from the shrilly whistling kettle into the waiting pot on the stove and promptly dumped in the noodles that maids had left out. "Vegetables, Kei."

Atobe absently passed her one of the two bowls, which she proceeded to empty into the pot. "How on earth did you forget, Rei? You love letters over any other form of communication. Something about not talking, I believe."

"Shut up, Monkey King." Reiko sulked. "I just did, alright? Anyway, he wanted my opinion on whether he should come over to Japan to study instead to get away from his father and since there are deadlines to such things…"

Her cousin nodded. "Hyotei?"

She rolled her eyes in response. "No, Rikkaidai." She smirked at his gaping face, stirring the food in the pot. "Close your mouth, Kei. You look like a fish. Of course Hyotei."

She fished in her pocket for her vibrating phone, snapping it open, while finishing her reply to her cousin. "Do you think I'll give Rikkai another trump card they _don't_ need? Moshi moshi?"

"_What trump card are you keeping from me now, Reiko?" _A too-familiar voice rang into her ear. The past few weeks of practice kept Reiko from resembling a tomato but it didn't stop her from berating herself mentally for not checking the caller ID before picking up the phone.

"Nothing that you need concern yourself with!" She blithely replied. "Was there a reason you called? I'm in the kitchen with Kei."

Reiko could swear Yukimura was wincing. She had told him about what a kitchen disaster she and her cousin were, after all. _"I won't disturb then. I was just checking if this weekend was still on, since you've been uncontactable for the past few days."_

"Kei stole my phone. Claimed I'd spend too much time messaging to focus on training the team otherwise." She replied, deliberately not dropping names. Though her cousin's expression resembled the cat that got the canary, so it was probably safe to assume he already figured out who she was talking to. "Anything of note happened?"

"_Nothing much." _They both knew that she wanted to end the call soon, what with her cousin being there. _"Except that 'kaa-san came back unusually happy on Wednesday – it rivals the one time I walked you back and stayed for dinner."_

"Speak of coincidence then, anuie was saying that 'kaa-san was unusually happy on the same day and oyaji freaked out when he eavesdropped." The Princess conveniently forgot that her father freaking out normally had to do with her and some boy or other.

"_They couldn't have met or something, right?_" Seiichi worriedly voiced, his mind having made the connection hers failed to.

She grimaced. "Kami-sama, Seiichi! Don't jinx it and say it aloud!" Reiko caught sight of her cousin's face, and the look of unholy glee. "I _have_ to go, see you this weekend?" Once she had his affirmative, she flipped her phone shut without further ado, praying for her cousin to be merciful.

Unfortunately, kami was ignoring their wishes that evening.

"Smith's coming to join you at Hyotei from the states and you're on casual first name basis with Yukimura. I see what you mean by _forgot_, cousin dearest." The smile that Atobe had was positively evil. "How could you be so cruel to two time them, Reiko-chan~?"

The blush Reiko had been holding back came out full force. "We aren't dating, damn it, Kei!" She used the chopsticks in her hand to fling _something_ from the pot at her cousin.

Aside from a yelp at the hot object hitting his wrist, Atobe didn't react further, to his cousin's displeasure. He only went a step further. "Which set of 'we,' Rei-chan? You and Yukimura or you and Kevin?"

She flung another scoop from the pot, even as he reached for the bowl of other ingredients and hurled them at her.

"Goddamn it, Kei! That was shrimp in my _hair_! Cooked, oily shrimp!" Reiko yelled. "You're going _down_, Monkey King!"

* * *

The Takeuchi heiress was still grousing about it when she met Yukimura that weekend. With Saturday being taken by training that well exhausted both parties, then Sunday being usurped by family, it was their first time meeting up in a while. Reiko jokingly called it her warm-up for the Prefecture Tournament that would be starting the following day.

She had finally caved to Mukahi's whining and told them that since the first team Hyotei would be facing was (according to reliable information) easy pickings, the Regulars could decide if they wanted to play or not. To her surprise, only Mukahi, Hiyoshi and Kabaji chose to sit it out.

"It's a good thing, actually." She admitted to Yukimura, once she had finished demolishing her cousin's diva reputation with tales of his antics in cleaning the kitchen. "This way, I get to see how Oshitari does in singles against others outside Hyotei. Tapes can only do so much, and he hasn't played singles officially in a while."

They were walking out of the club – Reiko had stolen Atobe's card yet again – after cleaning up after a typical match that had most spectators staring. "Little to no challenge does let you play with the lineup at little more, see what other combinations are possible." He admitted. "I considered playing doubles for Prefecture as well, but it probably will end up too much a singles match."

"The other Demons?" She suggested.

Yukimura actually rolled his eyes at her. Reiko couldn't help but let a small smile slip, she was rubbing off him, obviously – he didn't even notice that slip up. "Genichirou and Renji work well as a doubles pair. Far better than were it me and either one of them though they both tried to talk me into it after I played doubles with you."

"That was fun, though watered down, Seiichi." She agreed, letting a smirk play. "We should plan a training trip or something after the Prefecture Tournament. 'Accidentally' run into one another, and then play doubles. That would be fun."

"Devious, bypassing your coach like that." He teased gently.

Reiko smiled up at him. "I learnt from the best."

"And learnt well, I have to admit." Yukimura conceded. "Since you learnt so well, what do you want for dinner?"

"Don't you mean since I played so well that you lost?" She retorted, smirk back in place. "It's your treat, as agreed! I want… Burgers!"

The one concession to western food she actually loved. Actually, why had it not occurred to her to just go out and eat fast food with Kei that night? Oh wait, her cousin found burgers too 'plebian.' Right…

In the meantime, Yukimura was freaking out. He already knew he was planning on working up to asking Reiko out. Burgers were just so… tacky. It felt cheap and he honestly thought she deserved better. "Are you sure? You get to choose anything, you know. There's no need to feel that there's a limit on cost."

"I can eat you out of house and home, Seiichi." Her plainspoken response startled him. "I assure you I can make a bigger hole in your pocket eating burgers than eating sushi or takoyaki or taiyaki or whatever else you're thinking of."

_Actually, I was thinking of one of the places that my mother adores,_ he thought, but didn't voice. "Reiko…"

Unfortunately for them, her phone rang just then. She looked at the caller ID, raised an eyebrow, and then picked up. "'Nee-chan? Anything wrong?"

"_Nothing at all, Rei-chan!_" Yumiko laughed. _"I was just wondering if you were returning for dinner."_

Reiko rolled her eyes. "I'd be able to give you an answer if Seiichi and I weren't arguing over where to eat dinner, 'nee-chan." She allowed a sulky look to take form. "We agreed that whoever won got to choose dinner and whoever lost had to pay. I want burgers, but he's trying to change my mind." The tail end of her complaint took a slightly whiny tone, to Yukimura's chagrin.

Yumiko could only laugh, guessing why he was so hesitant. _"Well, 'kaa-san is saying that she doesn't see you enough anymore and…_"

"She guilt-tripped you into calling me and trying to persuade me come back for dinner?" Reiko finished. The situation was entirely too predictable, having always happened once every few weeks. "I can't just _ditch_, Yumiko-nee-chan!"

"_Easy enough: bring Yukimura-san back with you. I'm sure 'kaa-san will be fine with that._" The matter-of-fact tone her sister-in-law's tone took was laughable, in Reiko's not-so-humble opinion.

Her sister-in-law had evidently forgotten about the existence of her husband and father-in-law. Reiko saw it fit to remind her. "Two words, 'nee-chan. Anuie. Oyaji."

"_Trust 'kaa-san and I on that, Rei._" The unsaid 'they are whipped' made Reiko giggle. _"I won't take no for an answer. Kei told 'kaa-san you were at the club, so I expect you two within the hour." _

Her sister hung up on her, leaving Reiko to stare at her phone, much to Yukimura's amusement. She met his curious gaze. "I think I've just been maneuvered into going home for dinner with you. 'Nee-chan and 'kaa-san both insists. You just owe me burgers another time then, Seiichi." She blithely walked on ahead, leaving him to follow.

* * *

Had Echizen Reiko know the lion's den she was walking into, perhaps she would not have been so eager to get a move on. But fact remained that she missed her mother and sister-in-law's cooking. Despite the fact that the chefs in the Atobe estate were among the best of their craft, there was _something_ about home cooked food. So it was with a hidden smile that she walked into the house, catching the tennis ball that Nanjiroh tossed right at her. "Tadaima!"

Yumiko walked out of the kitchen then, smiling. "Okaerinasai, Rei-chan. Yuuta's upstairs, he's back for the weekend – he said to look for him, if you had time."

As if prompted by his name, the youngest brunette in the house popped his head from the landing. "Reiko! Upstairs!" And vanished.

"Yuuta-nii seems anxious to talk." The addressed commented absently to Seiichi, who was too aware of Yumiko's mischievous look. "Where is everyone anyway, 'nee-chan?"

"I sent Ryoga on an errand with Syuusuke. 'Kaa-san is in the kitchen. 'Tou-san is…" Yumiko looked around, unable to locate the aforementioned man.

Reiko shrugged. "Probably went to find his porn as usual. I do so wish 'kaa-san will be thorough in burning the magazines sometimes." She sighed when she caught a glimpse of brown on the landing and an impatient hand. "I'd better go and see what Yuuta-nii wants. Gomen, Seiichi, make yourself comfortable, alright?"

A flash of a small smile and she was sprinting up the stairs she knew like the back of her hand. It was the same house she'd lived in during middle school, after all. Not to mention the fact that the place they had in America was styled in a similar way. Her own room door beckoned, but Reiko stopped at the one beside it and knocked.

"Yuuta-nii?" She opened the door to see her brother sitting at the messier of the two desks in the room. A wry look crossed her features. There was always only a messy desk when Yuuta was in residence. Fuji was too neat, so the room tended to be spotless when the younger Fuji was at the dormitories of his school.

"Reiko, just…" He waved a hand. "Sit somewhere? I wanted to get you before aniki got back, but this piece of homework is a pain."

The younger girl chose to perch on the edge of his messy desk, peering at the scrawl of Yuuta's homework. "This is English, isn't it? Just talk then, I'll help you out with that later."

Yuuta nodded, thankful she didn't suggest asking Fuji. While their elder brother had a good grasp of the language – what with the many times he had traveled to Europe for various photography-oriented trips – and the two had made up over the years, asking for help was still a sensitive point. "'Nee-san said you two weren't on the best of terms when I asked why you haven't been at home that much."

"It's easier to get to Hyotei from Kei's." Reiko shrugged. "Since he imposed Saturday trainings, my weekend time is taken up as well. Then I do have friends outside of school to spend time with now…"

He gave her a skeptical look. "To the extent of eating most of your Sunday dinners out?" Sunday dinners were, after all, traditionally family especially in a larger busy one like theirs.

Reiko winced, he had caught her there – and practically red-handed since she had been planning on doing it again tonight, before Yumiko caught her. "It's easier than coming back to be accused of turning traitor and whatnot. Fending it off… It gets tiring after a while, Yuuta-nii."

"I can't judge you, you know." Yuuta voiced after an uneasy silence. She looked at him properly now, choosing to abandon her perch to settle sprawled out on the bed. "I did the same thing before. The whole protective thing got too stifling, huh?"

"I don't even know if it was protective." Reiko admitted. "It sounded like I was being accused of messing with team dynamics and whatnot more than anything. I'd love to sugarcoat it and say it was Syuu-nii being protective, Yuuta-nii, but I don't even know if that's true."

Another silence took place where Reiko was highly tempted to play with her phone but resorted to playing with her fingers, and Yuuta took to staring pensively at the floor. "I'm more inclined to saying aniki was being protective, Reiko. But I _am_ biased, of course. If he was taking Tezuka's view on things – Mizuki 'scouted' and overheard that – then it would be too much."

"But if it weren't?" She voiced what they both were thinking.

"I can't blame you for acting the way you did, Reiko." He repeated. "Aniki, if he were being protective, should have made it clear. Even then, I think he goes overboard. It's toned down for me since middle school, but I still stay away because I _know_ how bad it can get."

When she frowned, Yuuta sighed, guessing what was on her mind.

"It's eating at you, isn't it; not knowing?" He asked. "I know I'm parroting 'nee-san, but you should really talk to aniki, and deal with it – make things clear. At least that way you don't have to avoid your own home. Nanji-san and Rinko-baa-san have been worried, you know."

Reiko would have answered, except for the fact that the volume downstairs had risen significantly enough for her to overhear her father's sulky voice. "Fine, you have my permission, only because Rin-chan insists."

Ryoga's followed in much the same vein. "Fine. But if you even so much as make my chibisuke frown…" Wait, what? Reiko turned to look at Yuuta who was barely managing to hold in his laughter.

"You know what's going on, don't you, Yuuta-nii?" She demanded, advancing on him, intent on dragging out an answer from him.

Lucky for him, the backdoor opening and Syuusuke's voice rising stopped her. "What on earth do you mean by threatening Yukimura in such a way, Ryoga? Is there something going on that should perhaps not be?"

Or maybe not, Yuuta amended his thoughts, as the Princess took to the stairs, eyes narrowed and hard at the implications of Fuji's tone. The younger brother sighed. All his work washed down the drain like that. Yumiko-nee-san better make up for it…

* * *

The uneasy silence that had fallen since Fuji's entrance was never broken by Yumiko even as she moved to do so – uneasily. As luck would have it, Reiko slammed open the kitchen door just before her sister-in-law broke the silence her brother had created.

"Family conference without me and Yuuta, not to mention Kei?" She asked sarcastically, eyes skimming the countenances of her parents, brother and sister-in-law. Judging from the women's self-satisfied looks and the grudging looks on the men… She blushed as her eyes alighted on the only person not from her familial circle. "Seiichi?"

His eyes met hers and it was all the confirmation she needed. Equal parts embarrassment, nerves and veiled hopefulness.

Reiko bit her lip, a nervous habit, before damning the consequences. "What you were planning to ask? The answer's yes."

Before any feminine squealing could take place, Reiko had turned to the last person in the room. With all the dancing around done with, her temper came out full force, which Yuuta winced to as he entered the kitchen.

"Whether or not it should be or shouldn't be is _my_ choice. I'm not on the team anymore, and Kei sure as hell doesn't care. Anuie has the _right_ to give permission." She glared at a mirthful pair of eyes so similar to her own. "To a certain extent. You have less right than the brother who grew up with me. Deal with it. Stop trying to control my life because, hell, it is _my. Life._"

She stalked towards the door.

"I'm eating out."

* * *

They ended up at the burger joint Reiko had intended to eat at in the first place. She'd managed to figured out just why Seiichi was so adamant after everything had happened, threw a tennis ball at his head (the same one Nanjiroh had tossed at her earlier) and proceeded to walk to the fast food place telling him he could continue staring at her like an obsessed mental hospital escapee or pay for her dinner.

It was a testament to his sensibilities that he simply followed her. Or maybe in his logic, he was supposed to pay anyway.

Only when they were well into dessert – they had walked to an ice-cream parlor just down the road – when Yukimura dared to voice just what he had been mulling over their entire meal. "Reiko?"

"Hm?" She glanced up from scooping up part of her banana split, vision partly blocked by her fringe.

It didn't stop her from noting the tiny tell-tale signs of nervousness though. "Did… Did you just agree because you were pissed with Fuji?"

Her spoon clattered into the dish, and she stared at him disbelievingly for a long moment. Too long a moment, in Seiichi's opinion. "Yukimura Seiichi? You. Are. An. Idiot." She punctuated each word with a pointed glare and a poke of the spoon she had stolen from his plate. "I don't care if I piss Syuu-nii off. If I cared that much, I'd have dated Kei a long time ago."

He choked on air at that too-believable image.

"Gross, I know." Reiko sighed matter-of-factly, before muttering under her breath, blushing ever so slightly. "Misaki-senpai would kill me, saying something about trying to kill my boyfriend on the first date."

Unknown to her, of course Seiichi had heard every word of her muttering and couldn't help but smile in satisfaction. Niou, Marui and Aka-chan couldn't possibly say he was overreacting anymore, could they? For all that their first date had been _very _twisted, he found that he wouldn't trade this odd dinner for anything.

* * *

**A/N:** Aside from 'Our Yearly Pilgrimage,' this must have been the hardest chapter to write. It's always the chapters with significant plot developments, I swear. Here, it's bringing back Fuji-and-Seigaku into the plot. They'll be around more now, but unless my plot decides to write itself (again), it won't be at the expense of Rikkai.

As with 'Pilgrimage,' I had to decide whether to cut the chapter into two or not. Since the wait has been horrendously long, I decided against it. Trying to get the flow right in this giant is bad enough, but in two separate chapters? No way. I'd give myself a migraine. The flow still irritates me a little, perfectionist that I am, but it's the best I can work so far. Concrit would help so…

Reviews feed my hungry soul with inspiration, so please review!

The next chapter should be up by Sunday (:

-iirse


	16. XIV: Perfectural Tensions

**A/N:** I apologize for the long wait! _**True Colors **_and _**Firsts**_ sucked up all my attention and free time when I wasn't working, until the time I had to write this chapter was pathetic. I'm back on schedule now, baring Real Life interference ^.^ Thanks for all the reviews, favorites and alerts. They make me feel guilty when I'm not writing! I hope this chapter of progress makes up for it. Do review! -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 14 – **_**Prefectural Tensions**_

"Basically do the usual, right?" Mukahi yawned as his captain and said captain's cousin briefed Doubles 2 for their match against Seigaku. The redhead's eyes drifted to the opposite side of the court where the old woman was briefing Seigaku's Inui and Fuji, blithely ignoring Atobe's spluttering.

"… It is finals! I know it's only the prefectural tournament but it's against Seigaku, not Ginko! Rei! Help me out here!" Atobe waved a hand in the face of his cousin.

On second thought, it was probably inaccurate to say that Atobe and Reiko were briefing them. Reiko was more focused on whatever she was typing on her phone than the doubles pair before her.

"Mada mada, Kei." She swatted his hand, yawning. Once that was done, she fixed her eyes on Mukahi and Oshitari. "Mukahi, try to be less religious. Oshitari, watch the violence control. You both know who you will play against if you lose."

Atobe stared after his cousin as she strolled to her seat as bench coach (Sakaki was away with Hyotei's orchestra for some music competition), purely baffled by her prep talk. It seemed to have worked though, as determination was clear in their first doubles pair.

His cell vibrated a message alert just then. _Since your pea brain failed to pick it up, I was telling Mukahi to lay off creating holes and Oshitari to watch his Otoshi in this match. The threat… Well, you'll find out. Mada mada dane…_

Atobe growled, before raising his voice to carry over to the girl whose eyes were still fixated on her phone. "Stop messaging Yukimura and focus on the game like you're supposed to, Rei!"

A pleased smirk crossed the diva's features as his cousin flipped him off in chat speak, both of them either blithely ignoring or failing to notice Fuji's black glares.

* * *

"One set match, Seigaku's Inui to serve!" The referee called; slightly perturbed by the fact that Hyotei's bench coach seemed to be ignoring the game.

Inui's Waterfall was fast, there was no mistaking that, but if Seigaku was hoping to earn the first point with the first serve, they were hoping for nothing. Oshitari sent it hurtling back as quickly. Glancing at the game through her bangs, Reiko smirked. It was a foolish move to begin with. Hyotei only had two competition level doubles pairs, and so they always faced off in training. Ohtori's serves were faster, which had forced Doubles 2 to figure out how to return them long ago.

It was still the boring part of the match, she noted, as Inui persisted in using speed serves and Doubles 2 won Seigaku's service game. Reiko considered the game and then the odds… _I'm starting to think this might be a setup for some dramatics by Syuu-nii._ She tapped out, knowing her message would reach Kanagawa in a matter of split seconds to another bench coach.

"Game, Hyotei Gakuen's Oshitari-Mukahi pair, 2 games – love."

_Just like how I'm manipulating my games so we will reach Singles 1 so that I can play? I must say that Yagyuu and Akaya as a doubles pair is certainly very good at losing decently._ She smirked at Seiichi's reply, opting to watch a bit before replying. She did need to watch so she could chew them out later, whether they won or not. She thought they would, and watching Fuji's service game only cemented the fact.

Seigaku's tensai tossed the ball into his standard Disappearing Serve. Reiko had once asked him why he never developed other serves for his arsenal since his only special one was broken. Fuji, to her memory, had brushed it off, saying that countering the moves of others was more interesting; the serve was simply for the weaker players he could decimate quickly.

None of the Seigaku team thought Mukahi would return it. Not to mention that he did it with his trademark Moonsault that had been forcibly improved during the grueling training the Takeuchi cousins had put the Hyotei Regulars through. Though neither were specialists in acrobatics, Reiko had tossed Mukahi to Shishido and Ohtori, ordering them to play and Mukahi to keep using his Moonsault till he could improve the speed and strength behind the shot. It had paid off, seeing how the redhead had pulled off a return ace that was normally Oshitari's job.

"15 – Love!"

The added confidence boost it gave the redhead was simply a pleasant byproduct. Reiko smirked and quickly tapped out a message. _Well, I threatened to Oshitari and Mukahi with playing against us in doubles if they lost. Since I doubt they will, and I really want to play doubles against someone… Shall we impose that penalty to both teams?_

Glancing up, she noted that Fuji's shots were getting harsher, and though Hyotei was still holding their own. Mukahi was getting sloppier. Deciding to test the hypothesis, she observed him through her bangs when her next message arrived, pretending to read it. True to form, he put too much strength behind a Kirin Otoshi he was using to return an accidental smash from Mukahi to the point that it was out.

"30 – 15!"

_And who would you play doubles with against Yagyuu and Akaya, Reiko? Kidding. How's the club this weekend?_ Her screen read.

She smirked. _Or maybe Kei's, if any of Hyotei loses. Though he'll monologue if Sanada-san is present. Syuu-nii's getting affected by my messaging you. I think he can guess._

"Game, Seigaku's Inui-Fuji pair, 1 game to 2! Change court!" The referee announced, even as Hyotei's doubles pair walked over to grab water and the like.

She put down her phone to glare at them both. "And you were doing so well too. Mukahi, don't let that one return ace go to your head. You're giving Oshitari more to take care of."

The tensai snickered at her unintended innuendo, causing the girl to blush once she had caught on. "Oshitari! If Mukahi is in better form, I expect to see more of what I saw earlier this tournament. Adapt it to doubles. Understood?"

"Hai…" The duo muttered, both thoroughly chastised – albeit embarrassed, seeing how it was a younger girl doing it.

She smirked. "I'm only doing it for your own good, _senpai-tachi_. You don't want to play that showdown, do you?"

"Kami forbid!" Mukahi paled. "You know that some of the best doubles teams are couples. It'll be a showdown between couples, Echizen-chan! And you two are good enough individually…"

Oshitari rolled his eyes, though his pallor was tinged green. "We get it, Echizen-chan. Come on, Gakuto; we have a game to win. It's your serve, after all."

* * *

Up in the bleachers, Atobe smirked. "She's good, ahn?"

"Usu." Kabaji intoned, as usual.

Misaki sighed. "Honestly, Keigo! You're only proud because she's your blood."

"Well, ore-sama would be proud if Rei was my girlfriend too, but we're related and the thought of us together is just disturbing…" He trailed off when he realized his childhood friend wasn't listening anymore. "Misaki?"

The brunette gestured towards Seigaku. "Don't you think Fuji-san's game is off? I don't play, I know, and I barely watch… But he really does seem agitated."

It was just then that Mukahi beat Oshitari to a lob and sent the ball into a smash that spun like a top on the spot it landed. The redhead sent a cheeky grin at the Seigaku pair, calling out loud enough for the rest of the court to hear. "Tornado Smash."

"40 – 30!"

"Yes, he's off." Atobe murmured. "I've faced Tornado Smash before, and so has Oshitari. Mukahi doesn't exactly have the power that Rei does to execute something on Cyclone Smash's level that both smash-counters of Fuji's would fail. It would faze Higuma Otoshi, perhaps, but Kirin Otoshi should be able to take it, at a chance. Mukahi didn't even try to brush the net with the smash. Yet Fuji didn't bother to even try to hit it…"

* * *

Across the bleachers, Kikumaru Eiji bit his lip. "He's distracted, partner!" He clung to Oishi's arm, anxiously watching his best friend's match. The acrobat's sharp eyes didn't miss how Fuji was always watching Reiko and would go out of control when she was texting or blushed or something like it.

He didn't quite understand it. Fuji hadn't said much, except that Reiko and he had fought on top of the whole mess with Tezuka. He couldn't really blame the Princess for leaving – he knew she was a hothead long ago, and Tezuka was rather harsh back then. Eiji sighed, missing the chibi who would make his wallet anorexic. He hadn't seen hide or hair of her since she transferred from Seigaku, and no one had heard from her either.

"Eiji, calm down." Oishi tried to soothe his partner whose death grip on his dominant arm was getting rather painful. "I need the arm to play later, you know."

The redhead instantly sprung back. "Gomen! I just wish things would go back to normal, nya!"

Seigaku's fukubuchou shook his head. "You should know better than to expect Reiko to come back, Eiji. I know you, Kaidoh and Momo miss her more than the rest of us – "

"Except Fujiko-chan! I think Fujiko-chan misses her more!" Eiji interrupted.

"And Fuji, as well." The resident mother hen relented, deciding not to argue the point with his partner. "But I think we have to accept she is happy in Hyotei. I've never seen her smile quite so much, except maybe when we won Nationals."

Eiji canted his head. "But who is she messaging, nya? No one in Hyotei or Seigaku has their phones out! It can't be family because she never did this before…"

"I don't know, Eiji." Oishi admitted. "I think we had best start warming up. We'll be up soon; this match is over, I'm afraid."

The redhead glanced at the scoreboard, flinching when he saw the score there. 4 – 3, 40 – 30, in Hyotei's favor. Oishi was right; Doubles 2 was lost to them. Watching Fuji lose control ever so slightly enough to mess up again, Eiji resolved to speak with Reiko _somehow_ once his match was over.

* * *

"6 games to 4. Game, set, and match won by Hyotei Gakuen's Shishido-Ohtori pair!" The referee announced.

Kikumaru looked at his partner with trembling lower lip. "Gomenasai, partner!" He didn't even feel like jumping on Oishi in remorse; that was how bad he felt. "I was just…"

"Distracted." Fuji's voice filled it coolly for him.

He searched his best friend's face, and found in that seemingly smiling façade the sympathy he needed, and nodded in agreement. They knew, at least, the feeling to stand on that court and see someone you cherished on the other side, someone who they never thought they would see on the other side during a tournament.

Thankfully for him, Tezuka kept his mouth shut and didn't test Fuji's wrath.

Judging from the tension that was written clearly over Fuji (in Eiji's eyes), the redhead decided he would follow their Princess once the chance arose and she left the court. He did want to know who she had been messaging…

"6 games to 3. Game, set and match won by Seigaku's Kaidoh!"

While Seigaku was breathing a sigh of relief, Hyotei was a different story. For the first time in the day, Reiko's phone wasn't in hand. That wasn't a good thing though, considering that Hiyoshi was getting chewed out pretty badly.

"I didn't anticipate Kaidoh in singles 3, and we all knew it was bad news when the match was announced but really? 3 games? I expected 4, at least. Your stamina has improved since middle school, definitely, but compared to the stamina players in circuit, it won't do you any good." Hard amber eyes bore into him. "You can forget all about that gekyukujo thing that you keep spouting. You're not allowed to speak of it until your stamina's up to par."

She made to stalk off. Two paces away, Reiko turned back. "Oh, and don't bother comparing yourself to Mukahi. He plays doubles only, that's what Oshitari is for." Narrowed eyes caught the snickering redhead in her gaze. "Mukahi, that doesn't mean you're spared. It's still a problem I'm intending to tackle, much like how I handled your Moonsault."

_Then_ she walked off. Atobe guessed it was probably in search of the nearest vending machine to find ponta since it was an intermission of sorts before the matches proceeded.

Smirking, Oshitari turned to both him and Misaki. "What are the odds that she is so grumpy because Yukimura isn't messaging her?"

"High." The Atobe heir replied, after some consideration. "Rikkaidai tends to clear their earlier tournaments fast, though Rei said something about them manipulating to play to Singles 1 today. Yukimura is bored, apparently."

"And while he's being entertained by lousy tennis, Echizen-chan is a grouch." Mukahi slunk over from where he had been arguing with Shishido.

Oshitari shrugged. "They are probably clearing Singles 1 by now, if they started at the same time."

"What are the chances that they'll meet up after this?" The Nakamura heiress piped up suddenly. "Won't it be so _cute_ if he came to pick her up? And it'll be teasing material, of course." She added for the benefit of the males she was surrounded by. After all, cuteness didn't matter to them.

They either didn't notice Fuji glowering at them as he overheard their conversation or they simply _chose_ not to.

* * *

Reiko was waiting, praying the machine would spit out grape ponta not some atrocious disgusting flavor like orange when she was accosted from the back. Accosted was the wrong word. Glomp-ed is perhaps a better description.

She would have tagged it to be Misaki, but the elder girl was far too slender to possess so much strength. It was certainly male… Kevin was still in the States, due to arrive in Japan some time? Mukahi only did it to Oshitari, anyway he was too short, she estimated from her attacker's mass. The same went for Marui. Akaya was terrified of her temporarily after a particular intense match between her and Seiichi he witnessed…

"'Haru-chan, let me go before your buchou makes sure there will be no 'best metal in the world' going around…" Reiko managed around the grip that she was in.

Instantly, it was gone. But it wasn't Niou she saw when she turned around. "Kikumaru-senpai? Kaidoh-sen…" She trailed off awkwardly, not really knowing how to address them anymore.

"Gomenasai, Echizen-chan. Force of habit, I swear!" The redhead was flustered, that much could be seen from the way he wrung his hands.

Reiko forced herself to relax. While her instinctive reaction was to cut all ties with them, she couldn't deny that of all the third years (sans Syuu-nii) she was the closest to Kikumaru. She allowed herself to smirk, hoping it wasn't the small smile that Seiichi had influenced her into having. "If anything I should thank you. It prepared me for all the glomping I've gotten. Is there anything I could help you with?"

"You left abruptly, Echizen." Kaidoh inserted, bypassing Kikumaru's attempt to phrase something polite.

"I did." She acknowledged; her face a mask of calm. "I can't ask you to understand it, but the atmosphere was too stifling. If it would help, compare it to how Yuuta-nii used to be stifled."

Both males flinched. Yuuta was in Kaidoh's year, so he heard enough, and Kikumaru _was_ Fuji's best friend for a reason. They both knew what it was like. "It was that bad?" Kikimaru voiced, understanding her comparison.

"Kei runs things differently." Reiko tried to explain. "He essentially trusts that blood runs true, and so he trusts that by that, I know my limits but he will interfere when absolutely necessary. I'm still 'chibi' to him," She looked disgruntled at admitting that. "But whatever the case, I'm not treated like an imbecile of a child. Unless he's attempting to pull rank – which always fails."

"Why?" Kikumaru couldn't help the question that slipped out.

She smirked. "Kei may be the Atobe heir, but you know how we're related by our mothers? Ojii-sama's only children are Ryoko-baa-san and 'kaa-san. With Kei as the Atobe heir, the position of Takeuchi heiress falls to me. We're of equal standing, he can't do anything."

"You're not going to come back." Kaidoh voiced, seeing the fond smile that had begun to form. It was more statement than question, anyway.

She shrugged. "I'm happy where I am, though it is giving me a headache trying to figure out how to address you all. I think in Hyotei the only person I call senpai is Misaki-senpai…"

"Momo-chan misses you, ochibi-chan!" The redhead reverted to his favorite name for what had been the youngest member of the Seigaku team. "He says he hardly sees you in the neighborhood though he stays near you!"

"I live with Kei on weekdays." She replied; sipping the ponta she had retrieved now that tension had mostly eased. "There's training on Saturday which we're all familiar with… I go home on weekends but Sundays I'm usually out with 'Haru-chan and Akaya and… others. Well, not Akaya since he's temporarily terrified of me." She amended.

Kikumaru canted his head at her. "Isn't it awkward, being gooseberry? Or is Akaya your boyfriend? Wait… Akaya as in Rikkaidai's Kirihara?"

As Kaidoh 'fssh'-ed his agreement, Reiko blinked rapidly, trying to follow the acrobat's train of thought. Were all redheaded acrobatic players so random, she wondered. Then it hit her and she couldn't help but laugh. "No, 'Haru-chan as in Rikkaidai's Niou! No, Akaya isn't my boyfriend. And yes, Akaya as in Kirihara. Kei took me when he went to challenge Sanada-san. It was… interesting."

"You're close to Rikkai now?" Kikumaru yelped in surprise. "That's… Weird."

Silence.

"How about we go out for a bite after this? Just us and Momo-chan!" The redhead bounced back to life.

Reiko shook her head. "You're just like Misaki-senpai that it's creepy…" She slipped out her buzzing phone to answer it, but she was a beat too slow and it went to voicemail. Sighing, she connected to listen to the playback.

"_Reiko, I'm guessing you're on the bench or occupied. We're done here. Needless to say, we won. I think almost all of us are headed down. I apologize in advance for the invasion. See you in a while."_ Beep.

She turned back to the expectant redhead. "Gomen, I can't make it. I'm meeting someone after."

"Aw, you're going on a date!" Kikumaru exclaimed. "So that's who you were messaging! I don't even need to ask, ochibi-chan! You're smiling and blushing and all!"

Mortified, Reiko cut her eyes to Kaidoh pleadingly but the bandana-wearing teen only nodded in affirmation of his senpai's declaration. Damn it, and here she thought she was over the whole blushing phase. She hadn't blushed around Rikkaidai or her teammates in ages!

Thankfully, the redhead managed to cool her cheeks with a few choice words. "Does Fujiko-chan know? I can't imagine that he would let you!"

The temperature dropped faster than you could say any variation of the Echizen catchphrase that they were all so fond of. "Whether he knows or not doesn't matter seeing how I don't need his permission to go out with my boyfriend." She spun on her heel, ponta still in hand. "Singles 2 is starting soon, Kikumaru-san, Kaidoh-san. I'm afraid I have to return to my team."

_Oh shit_, was the resounding thought in Kikumaru's head.

"I expect that your buchou won't take kindly to you to being late!" The Princess called, smirking at them. The redhead (as well as Kaidoh, though not visibly) felt better. She was pissed, yes, but not so much at them as at Fuji. At least that would count towards mending the fence.

Rival team or not, she was still their ochibi-chan.

* * *

Reiko was surprisingly silent after the referee announced the results of Singles 2. It was odd: she always had _something_ to say to each player towards the end of their game, or when it ended. The most spectacular had been Hiyoshi, of course.

When Jiroh had won, and ambled over to leave the court with her, she had merely smiled slightly. "It was well played."

Standing at the top of the bleachers waiting for the closing ceremony, she quietly discussed the match with Atobe. "Oshitari needs some work at adapting some of those moves he has in singles to doubles. Mukahi and Hiyoshi need stamina. I'll let you judge what Jiroh needs because he's just so…"

She trailed off. Whether it was from the lack of words to describe Jiroh's behavior or the fact that her hand was now taken, Atobe couldn't figure out. Perhaps both, he thought, as his cousin turned to her boyfriend and forgot about him. Misaki might've thought it was cute, but it made him nauseous.

He was more than thankful when he was called down to the court the closing ceremony to receive the championship. In Atobe's not-so-humble opinion, it ended too quickly – Reiko and Yukimura both joined the Hyotei team on the court, along with the few Rikkai members that had come along.

"Invasion, Seiichi?" The greenette raised an eyebrow at her boyfriend.

He just smiled at her. "Niou and Marui decided they wanted to go back to the sushi restaurant. I would honestly apologize for whatever ruckus they create. Akaya is joining them, but he wanted to try to pester Tezuka into a match. Genichirou decided he should supervise."

Reiko allowed her eyes to scan the mingling crowd, where true to form, Akaya was indeed attempting to annoy the stoic Seigaku buchou. She felt herself go rigid when she saw Yanagi speaking to Inui while Tezuka did _nothing_.

In that moment, by some chance, her ex-captain's eyes met hers. She cut her eyes to the side where the data players were moving off, before meeting his again with scorn in her eyes.

Sensing his girlfriend's temper rising, Seiichi's hand found Reiko's in a calming gesture. "Come on, we should get going before Fuji skewers me with his glare."

"You'll just smile at him and skewer him back." Reiko couldn't help but point out, smiling in spite of herself. She allowed herself to calm down before pitching her voice to carry. "Akaya!"

The seaweed head turned and 'eep'-ed when he realized who had called him, scurrying to them in a flash. He didn't like to show it, but he was really terrified of her right now.

Yukimura couldn't help but laugh. "Genichirou will be going with you, Akaya." He preempted any protests with a deliberate smile. "We'd better go before Atobe spontaneously combusts."

Indeed, Reiko's dear cousin was ranting. As usual. "You need a haircut and to stop being so hopeless, because for kami-sama's sake, are you blind or blind? Can't you tell when a person is attac – "

Atobe's rant was interrupted by Reiko raising her voice again as she walked over to join him, Oshitari and Misaki. The Princess was starting to feel like a babysitter – and she was probably the youngest person present. "Kei! Cut it out. Sanada-san needs to leave anyway."

"You need to stop ranting every time you see him, Atobe." Oshitari sighed.

Misaki nodded in agreement, as did Reiko, adding. "The way you go on, it's almost as if you're jealous that he doesn't play you any heed."

As the Atobe heir spluttered in indignation, the trio couldn't help but laugh.

* * *

Akaya was running past the gates of Tokyo's tournament grounds when he realized there was no yelling behind him from his fukubuchou, neither were there footsteps. He backtracked only to find him glaring at the couple walking down the street in the opposite direction.

Yukimura and Echizen had their heads leaned close, hands held. It was nauseatingly sweet, in the Devil's opinion.

He was almost 100% sure Sanada was glaring at Echizen though.

Just then, his stomach growled, causing him to lose than train of thought altogether. Akaya threw his voice. "Fukubuchou! ~ I want food!"

* * *

**A/N:** Like I said, I'm bringing back Seigaku into the fold. The drama is just beginning. I know some people probably don't like how Fuji and Tezuka are being portrayed, but I honestly can't see either of them (or Reiko) caving in so fast – it would be like an admission of making a mistake, and face it: none of them are the kind to easily admit something like that, especially when it's major. It'd have to be gradual changing of minds, or maybe some dramatic incident. I personally prefer a mixture of both! Like I said, the drama is just unfolding.

I hope this chapter was worth the wait. Do review and cya next week! -iirse


	17. XV: Dates Out

**A/N:** Hi! Gomenasai! I'm late again! Where I am it's Sunday evening, so I'm definitely late. Was out at a 'party' last night, woke up late and sneezing like mad... At least it's only a few hours? Soooo it's been a week-ish and hopefully the more 'tournament' and 'technical' stuff that I'm really bad at have been forgotten, 'cause this is largely development on other fronts. I hope you enjoy it. Thanks for all the reviews, favorites and alerts! -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 15 – **_**Dates Out**_

Tachibana An was behind Momoshiro on his bike on the way into a more commercial district to hang out, when she realized her boyfriend had stopped moving. "Takeshi!" She swatted at him.

He remained unfazed, which in itself was odd. "Ne, An-chan, isn't that Echizen?"

"I… Think so? I haven't seen her in years, you know." Startled by the question, she considered the green haired girl walking further down the street that had caught Momoshiro's attention. While she wasn't certain about the girl, her companion was one she _would_ recognize. "Isn't that Rikkai's Yukimura?"

Momoshiro panned his gaze left to focus on the person his girlfriend pointed out. "Yup, it's her." Before An could wonder at the pronoun choice or stop him, he had already raised his voice, pedaling over to them. "Oi, Echizen-chibi!"

The girl ahead turned, and instantly scowled. An watched in surprise as that scowl faded to a sulk once Yukimura simply reached for her hand. This wasn't the Echizen Reiko she recalled. Not quite, anyway. "Ohayo, Echizen-san, Yukimura-san. Gomenasai, Takeshi opened his mouth before I could stop him." She greeted, getting off the bike.

"What do you mean by that?" Momoshiro protested, bristling at the smirk that was quickly taking form on Reiko's face, also dismounting.

"She means that you're whipped." The Princess filled in with a note in her voice that, in any other person, would have been called cheerful.

Momoshiro would have protested, except that Yukimura preempted that. "Reiko."

"Seiichi." Reiko cheekily retorted, before relenting. "Fine."

"I think we're quits, Tachibana-san." Yukimura addressed the amused brunette. "Was there a reason why you called Reiko, Momoshiro-san?"

Faced with the smile that Yukimura always gave, Momoshiro found himself feeling awkwardly wishing he had listened to his girlfriend. It was eerily similar to Fuji's, yet different in its own way. "Nothing much, just that none of us had seen Echizen in a while. Yes, I know what you told Kikumaru-senpai," He addressed the girl in question. "But hey, being pissed with a few senpai doesn't mean you should ignore the rest, you know! Didn't think I would be interrupting a date though."

As Momoshiro rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, and Reiko glared at her once senpai, An decided to interrupt. "How about we double date? Then you two can catch up without compromising, in a sense. Yukimura-san? Echizen-san?"

The couple exchanged a look, and then Reiko huffed. "Do what you want to do, Seiichi…"

"Nice idea, An-chan!" Momoshiro grinned. "So… Street courts?"

The brunette felt like smacking her boyfriend for the stupid suggestion. Their favorite street courts were doubles only, not to mention it was the weekend – neither prominent player would be caught dead there. Thankfully, Reiko beat her to the punch. "Dating Tachibana-san really killed your brain, hm?" She smirked. "Are you sure you want to face us in doubles? Not to mention that it's the weekend, of course, and Seiichi and I are only the best of Rikkai and Hyotei."

"Atobe might dispute that, Reiko." Yukimura pointed out, eliciting a small smile from the younger girl in the quartet.

"Well, not street tennis then." An shot the former teammates a sly look. "I was thinking burgers, actually."

Momoshiro's Cheshire grin returned in full force. "Bring it, Echizen!"

"Mada mada dane." Reiko drawled, a la Oshitari. "Loser pays, of course."

As they walked off, Momoshiro absently wheeling his bike along, the couples didn't notice bright blue eyes catch sight of them before a cellphone was whipped out and speed dial made full use of.

* * *

If you were to trace back the steps off Echizen Reiko right then, you would end up in the Echizen household where Fuji Syuusuke was the only one at home. With Nanjiroh and Rinko both out, he was the sole occupant of the house and that was enough for him to let his guard down to pace the length of his room in aggravation.

Suffice to say, of course, that his tone when he picked up his buzzing cellphone wasn't exactly pleasant. "Moshi moshi?"

Kikumaru froze momentarily at the cold tone. "Fujiko?"

The tensai sighed. He'd forgotten to check his caller ID before picking up and Kikumaru always reacted so badly to his temper. "Eiji."

"Gomen, Fujiko-chan!" The redhead chattered, back to normal once more. "I was just wondering if you knew. Ochibi-chan's out with Yukimura. It looks like a double date with Momo-chan and Tachibana-imouto-chan!"

Fuji's grip tightened on the assembled piece of metal and plastic in his hand. "Hai, I know. I was here when he picked her up."

"Oh…" Kikumaru trailed off, unsure of what to say. Fuji was rather deadpan, and there was no telling what emotion he was processing over the phone. "Well, I'll talk to you later then! Just thought you should know!"

As the dial tone sounded, the brunette pulled the phone away from his ear, staring at it even as he settled himself at his desk. One would have thought he was a statue, for he was so still for such a while.

When he raised his head, the normally concealed piercing blue eyes were visible as they were met with the sight of Yuuta's too neat table.

It never felt right to Fuji. He still shared a room with Yuuta as he always had done but instead of the typical demarcation of neat versus messy that characterized their childhood… The whole room was neat, unless Yuuta was home for the weekend. And even then, his brother made sure to clean up before he left… It was completely unlike their childhood where he would have to clean up after his brother before Yumiko-nee-san got on their case.

Reiko's room was much the same now.

It held everything she had bought when she intended to study in Seigaku – Hyotei's syllabus was different and everything of that, she kept at Atobe's – but it didn't look lived in.

Fuji recalled the last time he'd been in there. There were no recent tennis magazine pinups or any pictures she'd been coerced into. The desk was clean save for the layer of dust that had accumulated and as neat as Yuuta's. Her open wardrobe door showed a too neat wardrobe only containing her uniforms and a few casual outfits, only one of which was for tennis. But there was an excess of cat hair all over. Karupin, apparently, took comfort in his mistress' room while she was away.

He wondered where he had gone wrong.

Was it wrong to want to protect his siblings from possible hurt? Reiko would have gotten torn in the end, Fuji reasoned. She was running the risk right now. Whether to stand by her team or support her boyfriend.

The title still left a sour taste in his mouth. And for all that he enjoyed odd flavors; Fuji found he didn't like this one. In a way, wasn't he to blame since he was the one that began the chain of actions that culminated in the Princess and Demigod getting together?

It had been teasing gone wrong. Tezuka had put two and two together and Reiko had probably taken offense at the way he insinuated she was incapable of considering the team before acting. She had wanted to leave, and he tried everything in his power to keep her within his radar so as to be able to protect her still. He had expected her intelligence to see through the whole _team_ façade he put over his attempts to keep her close, since Yuuta hadn't appreciated it when he used blood as a reason to try and keep him close. Till now, he didn't know if she had seen through it or assumed he was like Tezuka.

But… Well, everyone knew how _that_ went down.

It was in Atobe's hands to protect her after that. And if there was one thing Fuji found that he couldn't understand, it was how Atobe could just stand by and let Reiko run headlong into hurt. Atobe, though, would never hurt his baby cousin despite all their ribbing and teasing. It simply baffled him how the diva could just let her do as she would.

What was it that that Eiji had told him Reiko had said?

"_Kei runs things differently. He essentially trusts that blood runs true, and so he trusts that by that, I know my limits but he will interfere when absolutely necessary. I'm still 'chibi' to him. But whatever the case, I'm not treated like an imbecile of a child." _

Was that truly how Reiko felt of the way he treated her? Fuji wondered.

Somewhere in the dredges of his memory, he recalled something Yumiko once told him after Yuuta moved away.

"_People learn from their mistakes, Syuusuke. Sometimes, you have to let those people you love make those mistakes so that they'll learn and come out stronger and wiser for it. Coddling them and treating them with kid gloves like a baby could do them more harm than good in the long run."_

Yuuta had forced him to acknowledge his independence before accepting an uneasy reconciliation that was still shaky at times. But Fuji realized that he never understood what his sister was trying to tell him until today. He simply tried to coddle his brother from afar and Yuuta let him do it as long as it wasn't extreme.

Reiko was different. She declared her independence and fought him at every turn, intent on doing it her way. Afar or not, mild or extreme, she refused to let him baby her. Staring at the wall that his room shared with Reiko's as though he could see the coolly impersonal room next door, Fuji wondered if he'd been wrong.

* * *

In the meantime, the Seigaku rumor mill was at work. Kikumaru had spread the word to Inui, who had informed Tezuka when they ran into each other on the street – they'd both been heading to the usual tennis store. Tezuka to restring his racquets and Inui to pick up some necessary supplies.

The Seigaku data player was accompanied by his childhood friend, and as they left ahead of Tezuka, the bespectacled teen was forcibly reminded of the Prefecture Tournament as he watched them leave the store together.

Echizen's eyes were like hard glossy stones when their eyes had met, and her disdain was palpable. He could almost _hear_ the words, if her behavior was anything like the way she used to act before she left for the States. _"_I_ should keep my guard up while fraternizing with the enemy, _buchou_?"_

_Why did he not enforce the same standard on Inui anyway?_ Tezuka wondered to himself. He had made that statement to Reiko with the team's wellbeing in mind, but the data master had long ago made his association with that particular Rikkai player clear. In the same way, Fuji was close to Rokkaku's Saeki in middle school. Yet he had never insinuated anything towards them the way he did to Reiko.

In fact, he wasn't even sure if the insinuation was deliberate.

But Fuji had been furious. No, Fuji was _still_ furious, Tezuka amended. Ryuuzaki-sensei had been avoiding pitting them against one another even more than usual because who knew how bad the slaughter would be when it happened? No, Fuji resorted to chilly temperament and decimating whoever he was playing. No one dared to cross the tensai since Reiko declared she was quitting the club.

_Was it her overreacting – the Princess _was_ hot-tempered, as the circuit well knew – or was it really him having double standards?_ Seigaku's captain wondered and found that, oddly enough, he didn't have an answer.

* * *

Walking down the street of Tokyo's shopping district after their burger contest, the quartet were fairly entertained by Momoshiro's complaining.

"What has Hyotei _done_ to you, Echizen?" It was odd to use such a term on the Seigaku power player, but he was obviously whining. "You, by some fluke, beat me – "

Reiko interrupted, smirking. "Mada mada dane."

"– and you do it without stuffing your face the way you used to." He finished indignantly, pretending she hadn't interrupted.

The younger girl's smirk only grew. "After I left for the States, I only 'contested' against Kei and Kev. Kei insisted that I learn to eat fast without looking as 'plebian' as Kev…" She turned to Yukimura. "Remind me to thank Kei? He was right that the look on people's faces when you elegantly win is simply so much better."

Momoshiro glared.

It was true though. Atobe had drilled Reiko in eating a burger neatly the way he did. He had told her that she had to eat it neat and fast if she wanted it to be considered a win. Kevin had found it too hilarious and allowed the standard rules to be tweaked.

But it paid off. Momoshiro didn't see her hands moving frantically the way they used to and assumed she was losing. When they counted wrappers, Reiko had won, and she was in no way as big a mess as Momoshiro. His face had been _priceless_. Even as his girlfriend, An couldn't help but join in the laughter.

The laughter that they encored just then.

Catching her breath, An took a good look at where they were. "Well, it was fun hanging out today. We should do it again!" She smiled at the other couple. "This is where we leave you. Nii-san is in town from Kansai. Ja!"

"Tachibana? Kansai?" Reiko inquired of her smiling boyfriend as they continued down the stretch of boutiques after Momoshiro and An were out of earshot.

"He went to Shitenhouji High with Chitose. No doubt we'll see them at Nationals this year again." Seiichi replied. "The other schools that don't have a sister school scattered. You'll probably have seen some odd combinations in the latest competition. There will be a few more at Kantou, and then again at Nationals."

She nodded her agreement. "I was there for most of the matches, since Kei was in the lineup… Sitting on the bench is a pain but he doesn't want me in the lineup though technically I could be. I'm going to change his mind, I swear. No competition is _boring_."

Seiichi was about to ask her what were their games considered if not competition when he felt a sharp tug on his wrist before they were pulled behind a stall. "Wha…?"

The greenette shot him a look that demanded his silence. "I think I just saw Misaki and Oshitari in that boutique across the road. If they catch me, they're going to drag me in and force me into dress after dress trying to find the 'perfect' one for Ryoko-baa-san's birthday party."

"What's wrong with that?" He asked, not comprehending.

She gave him a look that questioned his intelligence. "You don't want to shop with them. Trust me."

"Would you like anything?" An unfamiliar voice asked. The two turned around like guilt stricken children caught with their hands in the cookie jar. The salesgirl continued, unperturbed. "Oh! I think I have the perfect pair of earrings for your girlfriend!" She giggled, addressing Seiichi. She rummaged around before pulling out a pair of small copper chandeliers decorated with assorted beads in shades of purple, holding it up against Reiko. "It brings out the highlights in your hair and makes your eyes look even more unique."

Seiichi smiled that telling smile at Reiko, who rolled her eyes. "Do what you want, Seii."

"If you insist, _Rei_." His smile only widened as she started the blush, realizing she'd just nicknamed him. Turning back to the grinning salesgirl, he told her. "I'd take it, please. How much?"

The salesgirl could only fight back her laughter as Reiko tried to protest Seiichi paying. "Since you two are just that cute, I'd discount it. I'm assuming you don't want her to know the cost so…" She whispered the price to the blunette, who continued to ignore his girlfriend's protests until the package was paid for and pressed into his hand, and he passed it to her, enjoying her look of embarrassment, annoyance and veiled cheer.

"Thanks for not telling her the price." He added to the salesgirl with a smile as he left the stall following Reiko who had rapidly walked off with as much dignity and 'diva' that she could muster from channeling her cousin. As he caught up to her, Seiichi found himself not even needing to smile for the façade – he was smiling perfectly naturally. And it wasn't from force of habit.

* * *

In the boutique, Misaki stopped mid-laugh as Oshitari told her how Atobe had begun to confiscate Reiko's phone during training on and off as a joke and the Princess's irritated response.

"Misaki?" Oshitari questioned the heiress's sudden silence and furrowed brow. "Misaki, if you continue frowning, you're going to get wrinkles…"

She snapped out of it. "Shut up, Yuushi."

"Care to share?" Hyotei's tensai, leaning against a chair that the large fitting room of the boutique provided, merely drawled.

Misaki mock-glared at him from beside a rack of dresses. "For a moment, I thought I saw Reiko-chan, Yuushi. Then she was gone when I looked again."

Oshitari smirked, and instantly she knew she was in trouble. That smirk never meant anything good. It was the same look that he had given Reiko that had made the younger girl desperate enough to agree to grant Misaki free rein for their sleepover as long as Oshitari was quelled. Unfortunately for Misaki, there was no one to get her out of this. "I didn't realize you were pining over Atobe to the point of becoming delusional, Misaki…"

He was met by a rejected dress of bright pink flying at his face, and grimaced. The color looked awful next to his hair, as the mirrored walls of the fitting room informed him. Well, that was another thing that he and Gakuto had in common…

"Keigo and I aren't involved and never will be, Yuushi!" The exasperated heiress bit out. "Get used to it already! We aren't interested in each other that way!"

She was met by a raised eyebrow too reminiscent of the cause of their shopping, as well as the subject of their 'discussion.' Oshitari either had Takeuchi blood somewhere way back, or he had been hanging out with the cousins too much. She personally thought the former was more plausible, given how convoluted the family trees could get in their society.

Sighing, Misaki turned back to the rack of dresses that she had commandeered into the fitting room to browse, and added. "Besides… I wasn't kidding about jealousy the other day."

"What?" It took Oshitari a while to catch her meaning before he took two strides to Misaki's side and snatched the dress she was holding out for his opinion, demanding. "Are you quite sane, Misaki?"

"No, Yuushi. I'm not sane. According to you, I'm delusional and pining for Keigo, remember?" She snapped, annoyed. He didn't have to treat the dress so badly did he? It was a really nice one, possibly _the one_.

He continued staring at her. "It's ridiculous. Atobe and…" He couldn't manage to say it aloud, as though saying it would grant it credence or worse yet, turn it into reality. Oh how horrific if that were the case.

The Nakamura heiress shrugged, dropping the ladylike façade she tended to hold when in public settings. "I'm not sure if I was joking because it could be true. Even if it were… Well, I doubt Keigo realizes it." She laughed falsely, trying to wave it off. "We don't need to worry just yet, Yuushi. Hopefully, I'm wrong. Or if I'm right, Keigo gets over it without realizing it. Now, can I have your opinion on the dress you've been gripping?"

"Right. Hopefully." It was almost as though Misaki had killed his brain. If the topic wasn't as severe, she would have laughed at the steep drop in IQ the tensai had underwent. Oshitari, on the other hand, chose to not think about it, and turned his attention to the dress he held, protesting. "I honestly don't see what's wrong with black and sleek, Misaki. No one can go wrong with that!"

She gave him that patented condescending look that women give men. "Men!" See, he knew it! "Black and sleek is so _boring_. And Reiko-chan's so much younger. Get her something less mature, Yuushi! Now, opinion?"

The tensai considered the dress he held, pushing the other topic of their discussion from the forefront of his mind. "The cut is precisely what you wanted. And if you're willing to give up your fixation on that particular shade of green, this works very well."

"You know what? I think so too." Misaki smiled. The dress was between off-white and yellowed paper, with purple butterflies chasing black and bronze flowers decorating the skirt that ended a few inches above the knee. "I think I have the shoes for this."

Oshitari nodded. "We'll take it, then, and I assume you want to buy a clutch before dragging Atobe to buy the jewellery?"

"You know me so well, Yuushi." She grinned. "Keigo's a pain to go shopping with, but his taste in jewellery is impeccable when he's not going overboard. I suspect he will make an exception regarding his dislike for 'plebian shops' for his baby cousin and me. I have to peruse Reiko's jewellery first though."

Misaki was met with an incredulous look, to which she had to concede. "True, the chances that she has anything is quite… unlikely."

Oshitari gave a look that screamed 'No shit, Sherlock.' The two burst into laughter, earlier discussion having been temporarily forgotten, and now just wondering how much of Reiko's clothing and paraphernalia could meet Misaki's exacting standards.

_If only they knew…_

* * *

**A/N:** My shortest chapter in a while, and I'm aware. It's been getting harder to write this, as it no longer becomes just "setting the stage" but working my way up to the drama. I thought this chapter would be easier to write as it was supposed to be 'bridging' chapter, largely. And it was. Until I had to write Fuji and Tezuka.

Have I mentioned that the whole Seigaku conflict's a pain to write? It is headache inducing. I have no clue what I was thinking when I let my plot runaway from me and then have Reiko wanting to transfer and meh, you know, all this happens. Well, it has to get worse to get better and that's definitely something to be noted as the drama unfolds!

Let me know what you think, 'cause all reviews are appreciated (:

-iirse


	18. XVI: Devious Training

**A/N:** This chapter's a confusion of hinting, typical filler-ish, and technicalities. All in all, a pain. On the up side, I just realized that I'm past the 100-review mark. Yes, I'm slow but yay! You guys are awesome! ~ Seeing 1xx reviews just makes me hyper enough to get through this chapter! It's a monster chapter too; see how much reviews influence me?

Drama central erupts in the next chapter so send me your guesses what's going to happen? (: Would be nice to know how bad my red herrings and actual hints are! -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 16 – **_**Devious Training**_

Across Hyotei's sprawling campus, a grand total of eight people received a text blast.

Retrieving the sleek device that just vibrated from the pocket of her tailored uniform, courtesy of the Atobe heir, Echizen Reiko nodded absently at Misaki while pressing the necessary icons to view the text message. Sharp and precise, it merely stated the necessary.

_Check the noticeboard, plebeians._

It was curious enough to distract Reiko altogether. She raised an eyebrow at the message. Her cousin normally would find some hapless soul to run errands for him, be it a member of his too large fan club or one of the non-Regulars. Texting was simply rare.

Curiosity alone decided which path to take when she was faced with the proverbial fork of the road in the form of the hallways of their esteemed school, and Reiko veered towards the corridor that would lead her to underutilized tennis club noticeboard, explaining to the baffled Misaki along the way. "Kei sent a message to check the noticeboard."

The Nakamura heiress blinked at her, forgetting her chagrin at being ignored – Reiko did it often enough anyway; especially when she was messaging Yukimura. "You have a noticeboard?"

Yes, that was how unknown the noticeboard was. Every club had one, but tennis? Word of mouth usually worked well enough, seeing how they had so many hapless souls at their disposal. The less promising non-Regulars checked there for their schedules – they weren't enough important enough, in Atobe's eyes, to warrant a text blast. Other than that, the most promising of them were included in text blasts and the other members were well-connected enough to receive information through word of mouth.

Rather unorthodox, but it had proved reliable enough.

The Regulars, in their select number, never had any need for the noticeboard. They always met in some fraction of their number throughout the day, during various breaks and classes such that any word necessary got out by the time it _needed_ to get out.

It was this that made Reiko confused. Why would her cousin need to use the noticeboard for anything? She ignored Misaki's question in favor of sifting through her memory but couldn't remember anything of significance since the Prefecture Tournament a few weeks ago. Unless… _No, they couldn't have._ Reiko decided as she came to a stop before the huge noticeboard where one pin up had covered the rest.

_They did_. In large text in a customized font based off her cousin's handwriting (Reiko still couldn't believe he had paid someone to create a font based on his handwriting), the header read: _One Week Training Trip. _It was listed as starting tomorrow, with a reporting time she hadn't seen since she was a child.

A very young child.

_They did._ She felt her stomach sink to her feet – if that were anatomically possible – at the confirmation.

"Reiko-chan?" Misaki questioned, waving a hand anxiously in front of the Princess's too-still face. Amber eyes resignedly met hers. "You know what this is about, right?"

Reiko knew too well, in fact. She had been there when the plot was concocted, after all. All it had taken was three tennis-obsessed men in the family discussing tennis during dinner. More specifically, an Echizen-Atobe dinner. Both Ryoko and Rinko had shaken their heads at their sons (and husband, in Rinko's case), but allowed it to go on. The last Takeuchi female in the room had ignored them, thinking it was just a joke.

So much for that.

It was all Ryoga's fault, really. He had been the one to offer with a grin. "Hey chibisuke, want me to help you with training someday?"

"Why the sudden offer?" Reiko had shot back. Ryoga was positively stingy with his time – with his work and 'newlywed' lifestyle, they hardly played tennis anymore save on family dinner Sundays. And that was if she made it back home. He argued that their training was similar anyway, having both been trained by the same man. Offering not just to train with her but to train her team was just… _off_.

And the man himself had to speak. "Conflict of interest. You and Keigo were in different schools. We didn't want to bring the competition into the family." Nanjiroh had answered.

"She brought competition into the family when she shaved my head, Nan-ji-chan." Keigo had complained, sending both families into laughter. The hair shaving was something that Reiko never let Keigo live down, and something that Keigo never ceased complaining about.

When they all had calmed down, Ryoga had to interject another smart comment again. "Why are you questioning the offer, Rei-chan? Afraid of the repercussions on your relationship? If you really want to, I suppose we _could_ train your boyfriend's team too." He had grinned at his sister, either oblivious or immune to the glare that Keigo sent him.

Reiko had sniffed, and shot down the suggestion, to Keigo's relief. "Do you honestly think that Rikkai would take charity, anuie?"

Their discussion had ended there, after being diverted by laughter and teasing (mainly directed at Reiko), but apparently, her cousin, brother and father had discussed and planned this since then. Reiko glared at the poster (it was too glossy to be called anything less) harder, having related the entire fiasco to her now-oddly-beaming senpai.

"Reiko-chan! I'm so proud of you!" The elder girl exclaimed. "Oh, how far you've come, that you'd willingly admit that Yukimura-san's your boyfriend!"

Instant. Blush.

"Though that shouldn't be too hard, consider Keigo tells me he has to threaten confiscating your phone lately… Speaking of texting, you should let him know you'll be away, hm?" Misaki continued on various off tangents even as the Takeuchi heiress sighed and steered them both to class, promising herself to humiliate her cousin after she called her boyfriend to inform him of her disappearance.

World War Three (and Four) would erupt if she disappeared without a word, if his temperament was anything like the other blunette as well as the other smiling sadist she knew. Much like those video games or shows with awesome music that Akaya that had gotten her addicted to…

* * *

Rock instrumentals streaming through the air towards the end of tennis practice was nothing to faze the Three Demons of Rikkaidai. They blithely ignored it, continuing their discussion on training – Akaya and Niou's ringtones both were of that variety. It wasn't till the lyrics began that Yukimura realized that it was _his _phone that was ringing, and _then _it started to faze them because well, it's Yukimura.

_Smeared in setbacks, lost in fads…_

Dear kami! Was that anime? Once he had overcome the shock that Yukimura's ringtone was an anime opening song with rock instrumentals, Akaya's head turned. Any faster and he would have snapped his neck. By that point in time, his buchou had already answered the phone and was already talking. "You want me to tell Niou and Akaya you won't be around?"

"Tell me what!" The seaweed head demanded, bouncing over and around at the mention of his name. News for him, and not to mention a new anime fan in the form of his buchou. Yatta!

Yukimura shot Yanagi a _look_ that demanded he deal with the menace that was their lone second year regular. "Echizen-san called. Apparently she won't be around, and wants you to know. Keep quiet, Akaya, and behave, and perhaps Seiichi will pass on the rest of the message when he's done talking to her."

Like a trained puppy, Kirihara sat down on the ground and ceased his bouncing in favor of eavesdropping.

"We'll be at camp too, so there goes our plan of clashing training camps and issuing challenges, I know." The blunette smiled ruefully, pausing to listen. "Alright, you could have waited for my turn to call tonight, you know… Fine, I'm _going_. So easily replaced, ne, Rei? … Ja!"

"You didn't talk to 'nee-chan for long!" Kirihara's accusatory words were out the second his captain snapped the phone shut.

Yanagi gave him a baffled look. "You do realize that Echizen-san is a year your junior, right?"

Kirihara flapped a hand at him. "Whatever, Yanagi-senpai! Rei-nee-chan's dating 'Mura-buchou and 'Mura-buchou's old. So she's 'nee-chan."

Yukimura coughed discreetly to attract Yanagi's attention and mouthed. "Akaya-logic." The brunette frowned, but nodded his agreement. Sometimes, it was just best not to argue with their protégé's convoluted mind.

"Anyhow, Akaya." Yukimura addressed the second year. "Rei asked me to tell you, Niou and Marui that she can't go to the arcade with you because Atobe decided on an impromptu training trip. I take it you haven't informed her Rikkai's having training camp as well?"

Rikkaidai's Trouble Trio had fought over who got to tell Reiko about training camp when the announcement had been made, which was the only reason why Yukimura hadn't done so – he'd assumed they would have fought it out, or all called her together, and his girlfriend would have found out.

"Marui-senpai was supposed to!" Bright green eyes widened to epic proportions in fear, Akaya pointed haphazardly in the general direction of the self-proclaimed genius.

A split second later, Marui shrieked in reply. "If you were talking about informing Reiko that was Niou, not me!"

"What the… That was you, puri!" Niou yelled back.

Turning back to discuss the finer details of training with Yanagi and Sanada, Yukimura repressed a smirk. Yes, life was normal at Rikkaidai as always.

* * *

_Normal. Kami-sama, I miss normal!_

Nearly a week later, Reiko was thinking of her 'normal' life. Life as per normal at Hyotei, as it was, had been discussed in great detail with Kevin over the phone. He was a close friend, and not to mention leaning towards transferring to Hyotei for the rest of high school.

That, however, didn't give him the right to pry into her relationships, and she had told him as much during their phone call that had interrupted her conversation with Seiichi when she called to tell him that she would be away.

Kevin honestly could read her too well, picking up from the get-go that she was grumpy. It might have been because of her greeting… "Hello to you too, Kevin-No-Timing-Smith."

"_Reiko! What's gotten you so worked up now? Did I interrupt your make-out session?" _The blonde's too-cheerful voice had sounded from across the Pacific. Or was it the Atlantic?

Reiko didn't really care. "And this has to do with you calling… How?"

"_Everything! It tells me things about how Hyotei deals with rival schools!" _His bright voice had chirped.

She had no idea how a voice of a male her age could chirp or how his voice could be described the way one described light, but somehow… Kevin's simply could. "Bull. Shit. Now, talk."

"_I can't call to talk to my best girl friend now?"_ Reiko could have sworn he was grinning, and chose to give him the silent treatment. _"Reiko~ Oh fine! I wanted to tell you I sent in the paperwork already, so expect to see me in a few weeks. Probably shortly after Ryoko-baa-san's birthday."_

"That fast?" She had questioned, stepping into the one of the 'tennis study alcoves' in the school.

And this time, she could swear he rolled his eyes. _"Reiko, I'm transferring to Hyotei on the recommendations of the Atobe heir and Takeuchi heiress. Plus based on my veritable skill in tennis. Don't you think that will put a rush on things, especially with the season still going on?"_

"Fine, I get it." She had huffed, annoyed that he was right. People who were family tended to be, and Kevin was practically an honorary Echizen-Atobe. She'd add Takeuchi to the list, but knowing ojii-sama, he would assume that it meant that Reiko was interested in Kevin romantically. Just… Eww.

The heiress had forced the disturbing thought out of her mind in favor of tugging out a can of grape Ponta from the minibar, from amid other abysmal flavors. She always wondered why those flavors existed. Choosing to refute his last reason – just for fun, Reiko had added. "The season has nothing to do with the speed though. Hyotei's doing fine as it is. Oshitari has been a little strange since the dress-shopping incident though."

"_You went dress-shopping with the lady killer?" _Kevin had actually chuckled. _"This I must see. Are there videos?"_

Reiko had huffed again, annoyed. "If there were, I won't let you see. But no, I didn't. I was out with Seii when I thought I saw him and Misaki dress shopping. After that incident, he looks between Kei and Misaki and just looks… awkwardly in pain."

"_I would tease you about your boyfriend, but your cousin sounds more interesting now._" Kevin had muttered in reply.

Unfortunately for him, it had been audible. "And you would be screwed, Smith, except that I would like a second opinion on Oshitari's weirdness regarding Kei anyway."

Their conversation had continued in that vein where Kevin postulated and Reiko refuted… And that had been so… _normal_. Or as normal as life could get for her. They had discussed tennis after that, but it hadn't featured greatly since they both wanted to save the details for surprising one another when they finally got to play again.

That was the normal life she missed.

After all, training camp under the hands of her father and brother was insane!

Waking up at the ungodly hour of four in the morning for the past week, followed by crazy amounts of weights and distances to run… Reiko was immensely grateful she was in Hyotei without the juice penalty of Seigaku. She was also immensely grateful they had put her through this sort of training as a child (albeit on a smaller scale, or Rinko would have commited homicide). On top of the 'basic' training, her crazy brother made her play against Hyotei's fixed doubles. Alone. Before tossing her to play against him _and_ Atobe at the same time. Followed by playing against the old man.

In short? Insane.

He'd hauled them up at the same time today, more chipper than was normal and proceeded to up their daily running distance, since the weights were at their worst already. Reiko had lost sight of him a while back, and figured he was either ahead or behind, mocking whichever miserable soul he wanted to torture.

She was only thankful it wasn't her.

Reiko had been running so long it was completely her body working while her mind wandered, to the point that she hadn't realized there was something obstructing her path until she crashed into it.

"Reiko?"

She glanced up. Perhaps the right pronoun should be 'him'. Her boyfriend certainly won't appreciate being an 'it.' "Seiichi?"

"Lovebirds." Ryoga and Niou chorused, to each other's surprise, and the couple shut their mouths that had fallen slightly opened in shock. Kami knew when Ryoga had returned.

Ignoring the milling Hyotei team as well as the approaching Rikkai, she addressed the blunette, smirking slightly. "So, clashing training camps?"

"Completely unintentional, I assure you." Seiichi caught onto her train of thought, smiling knowingly.

The infamous Takeuchi eyebrow went up. "Oh really?"

He only continued to smile.

She smirked back. "Shall we?"

"I believe that's my line, _Rei_." He replied. "But yes, I would not mind." He lowered his voice so only she could hear. "And judging from the glare your cousin is shooting beyond me, probably at Genichirou, I highly doubt he would mind either."

Reiko smirked and pitched her voice to carry. "Hyotei. Singles, Kabaji, Shishido, Ohtori, Kei. Doubles, Jiroh and Hiyoshi, Oshitari and Mukahi."

"Singles, Yanagi, Akaya, Yagyuu, Sanada. Doubles, Niou and Marui. Rei, would you mind?" He turned to her.

If it were possible, her smirk only grew. "Well, my favorite Hyotei doubles pair did slack off because of complacency during Prefectural, _Seii_. I'm guessing Jackal-san is MIA and therefore this oddity?"

Seiichi only smiled at her in answer before finishing his lineup. "Doubles, Niou and Marui, and us."

* * *

Atobe wasn't too sure if he wanted to thank his baby cousin or yell at her. Reiko would have called it screaming but Atobes just didn't scream. Especially Atobe men. It didn't stop him from being frustrated though – especially since Ryoga and Nanjiroh had blithely agreed with their sister/daughter. The father-son duo had allowed Reiko (and Yukimura) to lead them back to the Atobe estate before retiring to the main house to let them tackle the challenge themselves on the courts of the estate.

He was still Hyotei's captain, damn it! What gave her the right to accept the challenge _and_ arrange the lineup? On anyone else, the expression the Atobe heir was currently wearing would have been called a pout. It didn't help that she had done exactly what he would have done, and therefore didn't really warrant being yelled at.

But really, did she have to play for _Rikkai_? They rejected her transfer application, for goodness's sake!

Atobe shot an icy (sulky) glare in the general direction of the court where Reiko, and Yukimura, was playing against Oshitari and Mukahi.

At least she had let him play against Sanada; Atobe consoled himself with that as he took his place to receive the serve, beginning their usual seamless play. After all, what else could you expect from longtime rivals _but_ seamless antagonism?

"Akaya! What was the agreement about Bloodshot?" Sanada yelled suddenly, eyes on an adjacent court.

On second thought, there were still some surprises, Atobe decided as he returned the slice that had hurtled towards him at that yell.

"Hai, fukubuchou!" A squeak was heard in reply.

* * *

Further away and later on, Hiyoshi muttered a grumpy 'gekyukujo' as he and Jiroh lost to Marui and Niou, 6 games to 4. The doubles 'competitors' had chosen courts at the extreme end of the expanse of tennis courts that was available on that particular Atobe estate where their 'camp' base was. Both teams had retired there, rather than Rikkai's less lavish location, to play out their challenge.

"Come on, you couldn't have expected to win." Niou ribbed, too cheerfully.

Marui agreed too willingly, shrugging. "You guys put up a good fight, but we've been partners since middle school."

"But you usually play with Jackal." Jiroh couldn't help but point out, his fan boy side revealing itself, what with the creepy details – in Marui's opinion.

Still, Jiroh had toned down from middle school. Once, he would be been squealing and cheering. He'd done it during the match, but was far saner off the courts. "We trade off when it's not a major match. Yagyuu is no fun to handle unless he's pulling the Switch." Without looking, Marui smacked Niou. "Wipe that pleased smirk off your face, Niou."

"What smirk, puri?" The Trickster grinned, though there _was_ a smirk there till then. Predicting what his best friend was going to say, he added. "No, I'm not going to whine that I want to watch Hiroshi, Marui… I think we have a more interesting doubles match to watch."

Both volley players followed his gesture towards the other doubles court where Oshitari and Mukahi were wiping the courts with their arses.

"Huh. Couple doubles." Marui commented. "If anyone could keep up with 'Mura in doubles, it would be Echizen-chan."

It was true, judging from the match they were watching. Yukimura served a Vanishing that was returned. The move surprised Oshitari though, and it was lobbed. Reiko leapt to return. Thinking it was going to be a smash, Oshitari missed it – it had been a drop volley.

"Not so easy." Mukahi called, managing to get it back across the net.

Reiko smirked, rolling her eyes. "Really, Mukahi?" Unfortunately, she missed the ball that Yukimura smoothly returned to his court.

The redhead was too happy to smash it in Yukimura's direction, in retaliation for saving Reiko's slip up.

Unfortunately for him, Reiko had seen it coming and flawlessly returned it via her brother-in-law's Kirin Otoshi, calling. "I'd have let Seiichi handle that, but I think you're becoming too reliant on that smash, Mukahi!"

"Yuushi! ~" The redhead's whine was obvious as they moved to position.

On the sidelines, Niou grinned. "Seamless decimation, huh?"

Jiroh nodded. "It's scary! I never knew Echizen-chan was that good in doubles!" He nibbled on the pocky he had retrieved with his towel earlier.

"Same way we knew 'Mura was good, but never seen it in doubles. They could give us you and Yagyuu, then Jackal and me a run for our money…" Marui popped his gum casually, eyes riveted on the game.

Suddenly, he sniffed. "Do I smell blueberry pocky?"

Niou took one look at Marui's face, and then glanced at Jiroh – the source of the pocky. He looked horrified. "Akutagawa. Run."

"Huh?" Jiroh blinked, tearing his eyes from the game where Oshitari and Mukahi were looking ready to die, but Yukimura and Echizen were still chatting while playing. He didn't manage to move before a yellow-black-red-pink blur knocked him to the ground.

"POCKY! Gimme!" Marui gasped out.

Wide-eyed, Hyotei's sleeping beauty handed over a box warily for it to be snatched out of his hand by a gleeful Marui. "Look, 'Haru! Pocky! ~ I got pocky! Nya!" The redhead stuck out his tongue childishly at Niou before turning back to Jiroh. "You're my new best friend!"

Back on court, Reiko glanced at the debacle on the sidelines before stealing a look at her boyfriend. "Seii, do I want to know?"

The blunette returned Oshitari's serve, replying. "It appears Akutagawa-kun has discovered Marui's penchant for pocky."

"We're going to have two sugar high maniacs after this." She grumbled, sighing even as she earned a point and the game when Mukahi missed the ball.

The redhead was out of breath and making his discomfort known. "Echizen-chan, you said we only had to play you if we lost Prefectural, and we didn't! Just because you're distracted with the whole Smith-debacle doesn't mean you can forget promises!"

"Technically, it was a threat!" Reiko called back. "Consider it a compliment; I decided to go against you and Oshitari because you two probably stood a better chance than Jiroh and Hiyoshi!"

(Insulted, Hiyoshi muttered a 'gekyukujo' to himself where he stood at the sidelines far far away from the other three non-playing doubles players.)

She proceeded to take the next point and destroy a ball with her Samurai Serve, while asking Yukimura why he looked confused.

"Smith-debacle?"

"Kevin; I played him at the Goodwill Games in middle school…" Reiko smirked as another return split the ball and earn them their second point in the game. "Our fathers have some bad blood, but we worked it out and got close when I went to the States to play. You don't remember it?"

"Wasn't around, Rei." Yukimura reminded her, remembering that year _too_ well.

Her expression screamed 'oh, shit' for all that her serve was as flawless as ever. "Gomen, Seiichi! I wasn't thinking!"

"Yes, you were obviously distracted as Mukahi-san has pointed out earlier." Seiichi groused, smiling to soften the words.

Unfortunately for them, the redhead heard him. "Glad to see someone agrees with me! Pay attention to training instead of boys, Echizen-chan!"

"I'm _training_ you _boys_, Mukahi! Don't push it!" Reiko yelled back, serving the last ball that earned them the game, shooting her boyfriend a guilty look.

* * *

"_Goddamn it,_ Sanada!" Atobe blew up as he viciously served another Tannhauser, resorting to swearing in English because that was how pissed he was. "You desperately need to get a _life_. And a haircut. And get rid of that damn hat." Here, the ball he was returning whizzed dangerously close to the aforementioned cap. "And speaking of desperation, you _bloody well_ need to stop being so desperate and stop being so _goddamn_ jealous and desperate. Are you blind? Can you not see that he's attached and they are perfectly happy in their own world?"

A smooth Hametsu no Rondo finished off the rant _and_ gave the heir the game.

"What do you think he meant by jealous, Kirihara-san?" Ohtori couldn't help asking of the other second year who was watching the game – the other singles games had finished as well.

Rikkaidai's Devil canted his head to aside. "That Rei-nee-chan is taking up buchou's time on weekends?"

Yagyuu had to agree there. "It's true. Sanada, Yanagi and Yukimura used to spend more time together but this year… Well, the other two have been making more trips to Tokyo. Yanagi to see Inui, and Yukimura to see Echizen-san."

"And it doesn't help that our Trouble Trio has taken a liking to Echizen and vice versa." Yanagi commented. "We hardly see each other outside of school and training now. Admittedly, we just met to train in the past. Resentment of Echizen isn't too much a stretch."

"And blood's blood." Shishido concluded. The other spectators turned to him, and the brunette shrugged. "What? Atobe might give Echizen free rein but in the end, she's still his younger cousin. He would still try to protect her."

"Kei won't want to end up like Fuji, I assure you." Reiko's voice called out, eyes already on the game after a cursory greeting nod to the singles players. "These two are just antagonistic, simple as that. It's the first time he's managed to finish a rant in my earshot though. Why are you so sure it's referring to us, though?"

Kirihara stared at her like she had grown another head. "Like duh, Rei-nee-chan. Who else isn't old news here?"

"Marui and Jiroh?" Reiko offered with a smirk, jerking her head in the direction of the two who were discussing pocky, bubblegum and cakes.

Her eyes automatically returned to the game, but she didn't show any surprise when Yukimura took her hand, rebuking the gossiping singles players. "You're going on with nothing but one rant from Atobe, possibly taken out of context. They do run in the same circles _outside_ school, you do realize?"

Reiko wanted to point out that if that were the case, she would know, as would Misaki, and Oshitari, and Yagyuu and too many other people to name, but her eyes were fixated on the game even as her cousin lost, 7 games to 6 after a short tiebreaker, and her mind working a mile a minute.

She wasn't too sure who was right when it came to Sanada, but her cousin was another story.

* * *

The night breeze was blowing strong through the open windows of the estate by the time Reiko finished filling in Nanjiroh and Ryoga on the matches they had missed. Other than Rikkai winning both doubles matches (if they were to count playing against her and Yukimura as playing aginst Rikkai) and Atobe's loss, Kabaji had lost to Yanagi again while, surprisingly, Shishido and Ohtori had won their matches. The next day would begin at an excuricating hour once more for Ryoga enjoying tormenting his chibisuke way too much – just ridiculous running distances, followed by cooling off and breakfast before they took the bus back to the city.

Despite the fact that Reiko _knew_ she needed her sleep, her feet led her to her cousin's suite. Oh well, since she was here already… She knocked. "Kei?"

"Come in." Atobe answered.

It wasn't too surprising seeing him tapping away at something on his laptop. Keisuke-jii-san did place a lot of responsibility on his only son and heir. Sometimes, Ryoko would argue that it was too much at his age, but it never had any effect. Reiko frowned slightly. Talking to her cousin while he was working never worked. It went into one ear and out of the other.

"Kei, close the laptop. It can wait for the busride home tomorrow. I know you can't sleep on buses." She cut off his escape route before he even mentioned it, settling on the edge of his bed. The trials and tribulations of having people who know you too well, but he did as she asked. Or rather, demanded.

"What's it, chibi cousin dearest?" He teased.

To his surprise, she didn't protest the nickname, or fling anything at his head. She just stared off to a point past his left ear. "I was talking to Oshitari before I went to see anuie and oyaji."

"Did you manage to deduce the reason for his oddity?" Atobe questioned, curiosity piqued. The cousins had discussed how Oshitari had been looking between Atobe and Misaki weirdly in passing a few days back, but neither had really made a conscious effort investigate it.

"He told me, Kei." Reiko replied, still not looking at him. "He and Misaki were talking about 'Keisaki' as he has taken to calling you two together. And Misaki…. Well, she said she wasn't kidding about you being jealous during Prefectural."

Here, she paused, waiting for him to make the connection. Just as he begun to splutter again, she cut him off. "And really, Kei, we don't know. We didn't discuss it; I dragged it out of him and then left. But I don't think any one of the three of us gets it."

"It's rubbish!" The Atobe heir was quick to deny.

She smiled quietly. "That's what I was afraid you'd say, Kei-nii-chan." She rose from her seat on his bed. "I can't support Keisaki anymore, I'm afraid. A person fresh out a denial recognizes another in denial, so to speak. Especially after today's outburst."

"If this is denial, I hope I'll stay in it forever." Atobe muttered. "You won't do anything, would you?"

"You mean along the lines of how we tried to match you with Misaki?" Reiko still wore that half-smile. "No, I won't risk the wrath of Ojii-sama like that. Misaki's fine, but this… This is madness. You have no idea how much I hope I'm wrong right now, Kei-nii-chan. Akaya tells me things, and I can't exactly approve of the guy that spends his days boring a hole through my head with his glares."

He breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank kami. If you tried something like that at 'kaa-san's party, I'd be screwed… Ojii-sama's attending, I hope you know."

Reiko actually rolled her eyes at him. "Kei, when the tabloids print my name, what heiress am I? I would know if the man I am to inherit from was attending an event, I assure you…"

"Speaking of which, are you bringing Yukimura and does Ojii-sama know about Kevin?" Keigo asked teasingly, too glad to change the topic.

She reached for a pillow and walked towards the door. As she stood in the doorway, she retorted. "What does Kev have to do with anything, Kei? He's a _friend_. And yes, Seiichi's on the list of invited persons. You would know! Unfortunately, I'm still your date, officially. Yuck."

Speech made, she flung the pillow at him and ran for her life, giggling the whole way as he cursed and brought ammunition out into the corridor as he chased her till she reached the safety of her own room.

* * *

**A/N:** Do you know how hard it was to stop myself from cutting the chapter at the point where they finished announcing their lineups? It was screaming for me to cut off there but it was only halfway to the point (in terms of number of words) where I normally cut the chapter! It was simply painful pulling away from that. I'm still wondering if it was a good idea to continue _but_ I really want to post the real drama so… This longer chapter works, I suppose?

I apologize if it seems rather unpolished. I give myself a week to edit and revise it after writing but this chapter was written and edited/revised in the same week. In a way, I hit a block after I finished _Dates Out_ and it took a while to churn this out. It's also kinda hard to stay focused when your sister brings home a sparrow to keep as a pet. The dratted bird chirps non-stop...

Meh, let me know what you think (: -iirse


	19. XVII: Drama Central 101

**A/N:** It's late by a week, I know! I'm so sorry. I went under the knife earlier last week so I was rather out of it; baby sis was supposed to beta and post this for me, but Real Life happened to my usual laptop (read: parents). I'm posting this the _minute_ my clock says 00:00 AM, 18th June 2011, Saturday to make up for it.

The anticipation for your responses is killing me.

Anyway, it's a mega chapter here so I hope it makes up for it. But I'm not too sure about the content. Don't kill me, please. It has to get worse to get better is one thing that I'm definitely learning now I'm in recovery! Do review because for this chapter in particular, I really want to know what the general consensus is. -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 17 – **_**Drama Central 101**_

"I don't care what you do, cousin dearest." Amber eyes were practically licking flames as they bore into the diva. "Chill out and calm _down_. I'm going to start greeting the guests as per our original plan, and I don't expect to see you until you are calm."

That said, she shoved her cousin towards Misaki with a muttered, "_Make_ him chill," before stalking towards the foyer where hired help loitered to aid in unmasking finery hidden by coats as the guests were greeted.

Misaki was at once faced by a frazzled Atobe. "What if she forgets what to say or…?" He made to join her when he was summarily shoved into the nearest chair in the alcove by the heiress.

"Calm down, Keigo. And _sit._" Misaki demanded. She was Hyotei, and for all that she seldom pushed, when she really wanted to, she could be as diva as anyone of them. Satisfied that he had complied with at least the latter of her orders, the brunette continued. "Reiko said you are not to be seen till you are calm, and I well agree. It doesn't befit anyone of our society to behave as you are right now. And you know it. So, calm down."

"That stupid fool almost ruined the ice sculpture _and_ the cake, Misaki!" Atobe exploded, but maintained his seat.

However, the girl remained unfazed. "Keigo, the keyword here should be 'almost.' For all that… fool's incompetency, he or she did not actually ruin anything. Yes, it shot your already strained nerves, but it isn't worth the temper you are throwing over it while leaving Reiko-chan to handle everything herself."

"Exactly! She's by herself!" He exclaimed, frustrated. "What does she think she's doing, handling the greetings alone? What excuses does she know to make?"

Instantly, his head was rapped on sharply by Misaki's clutch. "Reiko's handling it beautifully, Keigo. I don't know why, but she's doing it like she was trained to it since birth like I was. Relax, calm down, and I'll let you join her."

At Misaki's words, Atobe did calm down, astonishingly, as he recalled information he had forgotten in his haze of temper. "Ojii-sama had her trained a few years back, I'd forgotten." He muttered, before trying to get a better look. "Speak of the devil."

The Takeuchi patriarch's voice was strong enough to carry to where the Atobe heir was forcibly seated. Actually, it might have had something to do with the fact that the alcove they were in was made for 'spying' on the foyer. Hidden in plain sight, you'd only notice it from the foyer if you knew what (or who) you were looking for. "Reiko, you look well."

"As do you, ojii-sama." The Princess's overly demure answer, too, carried over to them. "Keigo would greet you with me, but he is indisposed as of the moment, I'm afraid."

The infamous eyebrow rose. "What did that fool of a grandson do to infuriate you now, hime-chan?"

"What makes you say that, ojii-sama?" Reiko couldn't help but smile slightly more than was expected. "Keigo wouldn't dare to enrage any female of Takeuchi blood, especially considering his experience with Ryoko-baa-san."

"Neither would he enrage the girl he's currently with, or do my eyes deceive me?" Their grandfather, god forbid, teased. "Don't act so surprised, Reiko. I did have a hand in the design for the house went Keisuke renovated it as his wedding gift to Ryoko. Keigo aims higher than you do, considering you're dating Isa's grandson through his daughter."

His granddaughter's lips curved into a small smile. "I'm surprised you're here, ojii-sama."

The old man returned it. "I had to make sure my granddaughter was dating a decent person, bloodlines aside. Once Ryoko mentioned it, my attendance wasn't a question."

"And Kei?" Reiko couldn't help but ask, smirking inwardly.

"Ojii-sama spoils Rei." Atobe hurriedly explained to Misaki before making his way over to them – hopefully before Reiko said something disastrous.

As Misaki watched him go, Oshitari rose from where he had been lounging unnoticeably prior to this to comment. "Missing him already, Misaki?"

"Shut up, Yuushi."

* * *

"… Thank you all for coming today, especial thanks to both my son and niece – Keigo, Reiko, if you two weren't cousins, we would match make you in a heartbeat because you both look divine tonight. And before I give you more reason for complaining about embarrassment, I'll let you two do what everyone's been waiting for." Atobe Ryoko finished, gesturing for her (predictably) embarrassed son and niece to open the dance floor.

Slipping into traditional waltz, the two matched each other step for step. Ryoko had been right: if they weren't cousins, they would have looked exactly like a perfect couple. She looked small and fragile against him and they were in perfect sync. Thank kami inbreeding was taboo.

But the problem was that it _was_ taboo, right now, considering how the conversation with their grandfather had gone down.

Atobe was still suffering from shock. "Ore-sama still cannot believe ojii-sama said that about Misaki and ore-sama!"

"It can't beat what he said about me and Seii." Reiko snapped back.

Atobe shrugged minutely, jostling her hand. "At least you two are dating! Your save was neatly in time though. "Ojii-sama, I can assure you that neither Kei nor Misaki-senpai is involved with one another"? Can't say I'm not surprised."

"I told you." Reiko sighed; shifting at the last minute as she almost missed a step. "I don't believe that 'Keisaki' exists beyond the platonic anymore. Not now, anyway. But it didn't really help, considering what ojii-sama expects."

Her cousin sighed as well, remembering the stern look that was leveled upon them by their grandfather as they were informed of what was expected of them. "You told Yukimura?"

Reiko sniffed. "Do I look insane? Anuie – all of them – and oyaji were bad enough. No, I told him to cut in sometime during this dance. After that, I'm winging it but I assume you want to do this together."

"Of course." Atobe returned, deadpan. "Split the attention. I'll ask Misaki to dance after he cuts in then we can drag them off to be presented for inspection by ojii-sama after the first dance. Everyone will be on the floor by then, anyway."

"Pointless exercise." His cousin sighed, recalling the exact words that had caused the cousins current problem.

"_I expect to be formally introduced to Nakamura Misaki, Keigo…"_

* * *

"… _And your boyfriend, Reiko."_

Reiko smiled nervously – a minute smile, but a smile nonetheless – at Yukimura as the first dance came to an end. Rather than continuing with the next, she tugged him towards the grand stair that Atobe Keisuke and Ryoko had descended from earlier.

Amused, Seiichi followed, knowing that she wasn't too fond of being the center of attention anyway.

Still, being the center of attention was no reason for her to level her lips to his ear and whisper an "I'm sorry" before walking the last paces before the head table.

"Ojii-sama, I see Kei beat me here." Reiko would have fidgeted but the etiquette that her grandfather had drilled into her was stronger than her impulse – especially under that impassive mein he was wearing. "As you have already met Nakamura-senpai, may I present my unofficial date for the evening, Yukimura Seiichi."

Seiichi's jaw would have dropped if he wasn't used to the typical smiling face. He'd never seen Reiko that demure (sans the greeting at the foyer) and that well-versed in formal speech. She enjoyed telling him to 'do what you want,' that he was 'mada mada,' and 'whatever,' for heaven's sake! Thankfully, training saved him as well. "Takeuchi-sama."

Piercing eyes bore through him. For a moment, Seiichi wondered if the Fujis were a branch of the Takeuchis once upon a time. "You are Isa's grandson, are you not?"

"My mother's maiden name was Isa Shinju, yes, Takeuchi-sama." _Oh, bloodline grilling_. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Reiko mouthing an apology again.

"Well, after Rinko, I know better than to protest." The elder man relaxed slightly. "You love that sport too much, Reiko. Though you are to be _nowhere_ near that stage your mother was at, hime-chan." The eyes were redirected to Reiko.

The (appropriately named) Princess pinked. "Of course, ojii-sama. It _is _too early for such thoughts. Have you been imbibing? You know 'kaa-san and 'baa-san wouldn't take well to that."

"Impertinent, just like your father." The Takeuchi patriarch muttered, before turning back to his granddaughter's boyfriend. "I'm sure you've heard this before, but if you do _anything_ untoward – and hime-chan doesn't even need to say it for me to find out – I can and will destroy you."

The faint pink tint on Reiko's cheeks turned into an all-out blush. "Ojii-sama!"

"Hmph, the boy needs to know what he has, Reiko." Her grandfather was unrepentant, though Reiko _thought_ she spotted a gleam of unholy mischief in those eyes so unlike her own.

Atobe chose then to interrupt. "I've already made that threat, ojii-sama. Rest assured if necessary, you needn't even ask." While he threw Yukimura a look that said 'play along,' Seiichi was quite sure that if it came down to it, Atobe _would_ do it.

"I see how much pain I'll be in, Takeuchi-sama, Atobe." He tried to keep the deadpan out of his voice, promising himself to tease the mortified Reiko later.

"Well, as long as you know…" The elder man waved a hand at them in dismissal.

Amethyst met amber and they moved in sync to utter farewells and run off to the nearest balcony or alcove or mildly secluded space in as dignified a manner as possible. They didn't know, of course, that as they moved off, grandfather and grandson exchanged a look of unholy mischief while Misaki shook her head, muttering about boys who never grew up even when they were old.

* * *

"Sorry!" Reiko managed to get out once they were out of earshot, safely out on an open balcony, drinks (non-alcoholic for them on Keisuke's orders) in hand. "I didn't know how to warn you. Ojii-sama thinks that any male that I'm close to is up to something."

Seiichi shrugged lightly, sipping from his glass. "Well, I have the most potential to be up to something out of all the people you're close to. And you're a prominent heiress, you can't blame him."

"Well, when it's you, I can't really say much because… you know!" She gestured at the space between them, a bit discomfited at having to put it into words. "But it gets too much when all the men in your family threaten any close male friend you have." She looked away, muttering. "There is a reason why only Kei knows about Kev, after all."

He felt a spark of… something. It wasn't temper, but it wasn't a friendly emotion. "Hey, it might not be your night, Rei, but you worked hard to create this still. You deserve to enjoy yourself, right?"

Seiichi was rewarded by a brilliant smile – which was saying something because Reiko rarely smiled – as he pulled her to him, holding her from the back. "Thanks, Seii."

"It's only the truth." He spun her around after a moment of silence, hands resting on her shoulders. "Speaking of the truth, have I told you that you look gorgeous tonight?"

A quiet smile crossed her features. "At the foyer, yes." A pale hand came up to play with her earrings. "Misaki-senpai couldn't quite believe I had 'decent' accessories."

"You should have gone to a jewellery store, Rei. It would have been more fitting of the occasion." He pointed out. Her copper earrings he had bought at a random stall was costume jewellery, nothing like what the females in the room where wearing – real jewels.

Reiko's hand descended on his, her heels requiring her to only tiptoe a little in order to press dry lips to his cheek. "It would be real jewels. But it won't have any real meaning, would it?"

* * *

In the center of the dance floor, she moved warily with some unknown guest. Well, not that unknown, since he was probably associated with either Atobe or Takeuchi in terms of business, but Reiko never had a head for names and faces. She did forget how Keigo looked like, after all. Their reunion as cousins had only happened after she called him Monkey King.

He'd dragged her to a side after the tournament after that and shook her memory enough that she remembered him. And he was her only cousin from her mother's side, and they had grown up together. This was somebody that didn't really matter to her.

Still, it didn't keep Seiichi's eyes from leaving his girlfriend. He honestly wanted to dance with her, or keep her to himself, or with people who knew she was _taken_ and that was it.

"Missing my baby cousin?" Atobe drawled as he settled himself across Yukimura.

Rikkaidai's captain smiled. "You would miss your significant other too, if you had one, Atobe."

The heir shrugged. "No, I won't. I won't be able to because I won't let her leave my side." He threw a sly look at his rival. "But she has to socialize because she's the hostess, ne? So you'll let her go and dance and watch her, just in case."

"What else could I do, Atobe?" The smile on his face was steadily becoming less genuine and more of a façade. "We all know duty. You should know that well."

Atobe's laugh was dark, and downwind of him, Yukimura could smell the faintest scent of alcohol. "Oh, I do know it well. That's the only reason why Reiko alone calls you 'Seii' while some others just pine. Still, this is the happiest I've seen her in a while."

He was torn, truly he was, on which vein of the conversation he wanted to pursue. Did he want to continue arguing over whether he should keep Reiko by him the entire evening, or should he demand what did Atobe mean by 'some others just pine'? Or was he most concerned over his girlfriend's unhappiness? The last thought sealed the deal. "What do you mean 'the happiest'?"

"She's been stressed."

Yukimura felt stupid, but he found that he could only repeat the heir's words. "Stressed?"

"You. Kantou. School. Kev. The team." Atobe shrugged.

He could understand all of the above except one, and felt like a broken record saying it. "Kev?"

"I thought Reiko already told you about him. She was saying how bad she felt about bringing up certain events while talking to Misaki after we got back." A frown crossed the diva's features.

"She gave me a rundown on their history, yes." Yukimura felt his temper fraying ever so slightly. "It doesn't explain why she would be stressed over _him_."

Catching on, Atobe rolled his eyes. "Oh, control your green-eyed monster, Yukimura! Kev and Rei are friends, pure and simple. He had… issues in the States and, after discussing it with Rei and me, he decided to transfer to Hyotei to study. Rei's just worried for a friend."

The blunette frowned minutely – but considering he was perpetually smiling…

"Yukimura, honestly! He's like Nan-ji-chan's third son after Ryoga and me, alright? He has no inclinations to steal your Princess away." The Atobe heir sighed. "Now, get out there and cut into her dance. That guy is getting overzealous. I have things to do for the after party, and Ryoga's dancing with Yumiko."

As Atobe walked away, he saw brown eyes fixated on the blunette, and sighed, muttering. "For someone with good enough eyesight to play your level of tennis, Yukimura, you're emotionally blind."

* * *

Slightly hazy teal eyes skimming the huge area they were in. Pool table. Arcade. Swimming pool. Movie theatre… The area was partly open-air – the swimming pool, but the pool went into a sheltered area as well before the floor sloped into the basement where the other amenities were housed. It was easily as large as the ballroom that had hosted the party earlier. Niou definitely didn't regret accepting Atobe's subtle invitation to gatecrash the after party even though he declined the original invitation. Judging from Marui bouncing around the pocky display that he was enjoying with Jiroh – the duo got along much better with pocky around, and the redhead didn't regret gatecrashing in the least.

Mukahi had cannonballed into the water once he'd bored of the arcade, pulling a resistant Reiko in with him. The hostess had glared at Oshitari, and yanked him in – he had been laughing at them. A few others had been pulled in – some Hyotei girl and Atobe – before they'd started a water fight. Oshitari and Atobe seemed to have forgotten they were playing pool earlier.

Lazing against his boyfriend, Niou was more than happy to enjoy the madness without being directly involved. Hiroshi was warm, and even though he and Yukimura were conversing, both their voices were smooth enough not to annoy him. Whatever Atobe had to do for this, it was completely worth it, in the Trickster's opinion.

"Enough! Ore-sama demands you lot go dry off before the rest goes insane." Atobe yelled.

Misaki giggled. "Oh stuff it, Kei. Reiko-chan and I are going. I expect you want to do the usual to close off?" The heiress walked off, swaying slightly – the alcohol they had been imbibing obvious was taking effect.

"Ten minutes!" Atobe called after them, as he disappeared into the shower room with Oshitari and Mukahi in tow. "Oshitari! Mukahi! I don't want to see anything or hear anything when we're in here!"

* * *

"Let's play Dare!" Mukahi volunteered, accidentally elbowing Oshitari in his excitement. Hyotei's tensai grimaced, shifting his partner slightly. Mukahi remained unfazed though, all too used to being manipulated by the blunette.

From her place beside Yukimura (having been pulled in place after returning from changing), Reiko glanced up where she had been playing with her glass. "Shouldn't that be Truth or Dare?"

"No one will choose Truth, hime." Niou drawled, grinning at the way the Princess was very much mirroring his position – leaning against Yukimura who looked like he was about to protest for her sake.

Before he could, Reiko had already shrugged. "Point, 'Haru-chan. Do we use technology or play it traditionally?"

"Tradition, of course, Rei!" Atobe called, tossing her an empty champagne bottle. Her reflexes weren't as dulled by drink as expected, apparently, as she caught it easily, leaning forward to spin it. "Marui! Rei, your call."

Instantly, her competitive gleam came out. She was about to do her clichéd dare (half of Hyotei's team had to wear wigs at some point or other already) when Yukimura pulled her back. "Seiichi?"

The blunette's smile was positively evil as he whispered something into her ear. It must have been contagious since his girlfriend's smirk matched his in seconds.

"Marui, I dare you to play a singles match against either me or Seiichi without imbibing gum, strawberry cake or pocky 24 hours beforehand." Reiko set down.

Instantly, Rikkaidai's self-proclaimed tensai paled. "What's the forfeit?"

"You do it in a competition match – and you have to win." Seiichi chimed in. "We can't afford losses, after all."

Marui's face was positively translucent. "Match. Next weekend." He turned to Niou who was smirking next to him. "Niou! I'm going to die! Stop smirking! ~ "

The Trickster rolled his eyes. "You're going to get your ass kicked. But it will be kicked sooner if you don't spin the bottle."

The redhead regained his composure enough to spin it. "Mukahi. Burn one of Oshitari's romance novels."

"Are you kidding? I'll be on the floor for weeks!" The other redhead shrieked. "Forfeit!"

Marui's look was positively sly as he carefully enunciated (a feat, considering how high on air and alcohol they were). "Make out with Atobe."

Instantly, Oshitari tossed Mukahi a novel. "Like hell I'm sharing, Gakuto. Burn the damned thing and spin the bottle."

"You're sick, Marui." Mukahi groused as he tried to ignore the licking flames next to him to spin the bottle. Oshitari was staring at the far wall, trying very hard not to mourn the loss of one of his favorite novels. It wasn't like he didn't have a second copy of that one… "Misaki-chan!"

The name managed to snap Oshitari from his depression enough to whisper something to his partner. Hyotei's Doubles 2 squabbled for a while before Mukahi appeared to cave. "Yuushi blackmailed me into saying this. I blame Marui for his inspiration. Make out with Atobe."

"Been there, done that." Atobe drawled, to the entire circle's shock – even Reiko.

"Kei!" His cousin gaped. "You… Nile. Post training?"

It was like a code that no one else comprehended. "True or not, it doesn't matter. You should look for green in others further from blood, and closer to heart. Misaki?"

"Repeat what we did to prove Atobe-sama that we were incompatible?" The Nakamura heiress asked, rhetorically. "Alright."

The steam that fogged the room was eerie, for a couple that weren't even interested in one another. In fact, Jiroh had to cut in. "It's too much! Enough already, Kei-chan! Misa-chan!"

"I feel like I've dipped into the incest pool. Keigo can have my turn." Misaki announced, before going back to her seat for Atobe to spin the bottle. Unfortunately, it landed on Oshitari.

The blunette positively quaked with fear. He was _so_ screwed. "Tell Misaki."

"Tell me what?" The Nakamura heiress blinked, confused. The whole circle looked equally confused – it was obviously an inside secret. Jiroh was bouncing around as though he knew something, but that might have very well been the sugar (and alcohol) talking.

"Oshitari."

The forenamed sighed and muttered, very fast. "Iusedtolikeyouinmiddleschool."

"Oshitari."

"Damn it, Atobe!" Hyotei's tensai yelled. "Yes, I _used to _like Misaki In middle school before I got over it, alright?"

The tensai looked positively humiliated, but Misaki only laughed. "Yuushi, really? I thought you knew that _I_ knew! It was mutual, by the way. But I figured since we both didn't do anything about it, we had decided we were better off as friends. Which we are!"

Awkward silence ensued until Oshitari gave in and spun the bottle. "Yagyuu, I dare you to somehow take Echizen on a proper date."

To his surprise, it wasn't the Gentleman who protested, but Niou. "Do you want me to die, Oshitari? Do you have any idea what 'Mura will do to _us_? Hell, if it were anyone else's girlfriend, I won't care because well, Hiro-chan will never do anything. But hell, this is Echizen. Her anger plus 'Mura's? Give us the damn forfeit."

One glance at the dark look that Reiko was sending him was enough. Unfortunately for Rikkaidai's Platinum Pair, Oshitari had been on good terms with Fuji until Reiko fell out with him – leading Seigaku's tensai to generically hate anyone in Hyotei. That meant that Oshitari could guess how peeved the tensai was at Rikkaidai. "Yagyuu, pull the Switch and prank call Fuji as Niou."

"You have a fucking affinity with sadists, Oshitari?" Niou's voice came from Yagyuu in a heartbeat, as he pulled out his cell phone, going off to a side to call. He returned a moment later, pale under the slightly tanned skin, instantly seeking comfort in his partner. "Spin for me, 'Haru?"

A death glare from Niou negated any protests. "Mukahi. Reiko. Dress. Comment."

The redhead paled. "How the _hell_ do you know I said that?"

"Blame Oshitari for forcing my hand." Niou shrugged, going for the kill. "Do you even what to know what else I have in my arsenal?"

"I thought Echizen-chan looked really good in that dress and _may_ have made a less than appropriate comment along the lines of Yuushi's rake characters in those novels." Mukahi mumbled. Unfortunately for him, it was still clear enough for Yukimura to catch it. Yukimura looked ready to kill, his arm around Reiko's waist tightening slightly. The redhead quickly spun the bottle, wanting to get over it and divert the sadist's attention from his person. "Atobe. Echizen-chan's meaning please?"

The cousins barely exchanged a look. "Bad territory, Mukahi. We'll take the forfeit." Reiko answered for her cousin; Atobe looked really sick at the thought.

"I'm lazy to think so just pass your turn to Misaki-chan?" Mukahi sheepishly admitted.

Misaki rolled her eyes, leaning forward to spin. "Oh, Reiko-chan!" The greenette instantly turned her eyes to Seiichi with a 'save me!' expression. "You did promise to take some initiative~"

"Already did!" The Princess protested.

Her fellow heiress merely smiled.

"Oh fine! Please don't hate me." She muttered the last to her boyfriend, before quickly pressing her cool lips to his.

Reiko hadn't meant for it to last long, but fingers in her hair quickly distracted her from the fact that they were in a room full of their peers, allowing Seiichi to take control and tilt their kiss towards make out rather than chaste. By the time they pulled apart, Reiko had forgotten about their audience.

"Oh god, too much information!" Marui had covered his eyes, to everyone's amusement.

Catcalls came from some of the others, especially Niou and Oshitari. Reiko took one look at Misaki and buried her face into Seiichi's shoulder – the smirk on her senpai's face was too much to take.

Atobe, on the other hand, sighed. It really was too much information for him – he certainly didn't need to see his cousin making out with her boyfriend – and he proceeded to skim the room. Kabaji had vanished, Hiyoshi was slumbering in a corner, and Jiroh too had vanished. Yagyuu caught his eyes and jerked his chin minutely to a side.

Kirihara's glare-radar would have picked it up in a heartbeat, but none of them had noticed till now.

Sanada, like Hiyoshi (and Kabaji) had chosen to stay at the outskirts of their party. Unlike Hyotei's uninvolved duo, however, Rikkaidai's fukubuchou had a few empty glasses in front of him, with one empty one gripped in hand violently – as violently as his jaw was clenched.

Atobe chose to ignore whatever reminders that glare brought to mind, and took the message that Yagyuu was sending him: it was time to end off their fun. Everyone was too tipsy to be sane right now. "Where did Jiroh go?"

"To sleep, somewhere, maybe?" Mukahi voiced, before yawning. "I'm so sleepy, Yuushi. Can we go back to our usual suite?"

"The usual rooms, you all know where they are." Atobe waved a hand at his team. They had stayed over too many times to count already. He turned to the RIkkai members of their private party. "If you want to leave, I can arrange a chauffeur, or else there are guest rooms."

Reiko and Yukimura exchanged a look. "I'd appreciate your hospitality, Atobe, as would the rest of my team. They are too inebriated to get away with this at home."

"I'll have a butler come down in a while to show you to your rooms then. I presume Niou and Yagyuu will be rooming together and the rest of you will be in singles?" He was met by an affirming nod. "Rei, Misaki's sharing with you. Don't forget your room is now _just_ next to mine."

"Shut up, Kei." Reiko muttered, blushing, even as her cousin waved in dismissal and headed for the stairs. "I'm going to get some water. Hangovers are horrible."

She wandered off, knowing his eyes followed her – even as they drooped shut with the alcohol (and the long day) taking effect, but not heeding Atobe's warning earlier in the night – but mayhap her mind had just forgotten.

* * *

He stands on shaky legs, and wanders to where his eyes had been fixated the whole night, wondering the whole time… _Why her? Why not me? Why do you never see?_

The scent of alcohol permeates his breath as he does what he has longed to do for a long time. Oh, for so many years.

They share that tainted breath.

He likes to think that he's removing the taint that _she _has created by that long session earlier. They are the power couple, not him and _her_. They belong, at last.

* * *

In the doorway, it is so silent that you could hear a pin drop.

The silence is painfully broken as a pair of hands slip in shock and the two glasses they carry – one half empty, the other full, drop to the ground.

If you were there, all you would have heard would be the soft steps as muscle memory takes over and feet pad rhythmically as though in a daze to the nursery wing that had sat unused for nigh a decade.

* * *

_Click_.

Where the sound came from, there is a flash of blonde hair around the corner, and a sliver of strawberry pattern pajamas, and the pitter patter of light footsteps before all is silent once more.

* * *

Sunlight streams through the childlike room. Wide unseeing eyes focus on an envelope on near the door. Somewhere, the girl's mind registers that someone must have slipped it there while she lay in a trance-like state of shock.

She kneels by it, pale callused hands opening it.

Within moments, all that is heard is the slamming of the door opening, and then moments later, in another wing, on another floor, another door slamming shut.

Photographic evidence of raven hair entangles with blue, pale skin and dark, float to the ground, signed only _"AJ."_

* * *

In a previously pristine suite, two girls are within. One slumbers in the sleep of the drunk while clothes are thrown haphazardly into a bag without a care for what exactly is going in. The other sits down at the table, drawing out a few pieces of paper and scrawling on them.

_I'm going away to think. The usual. Don't worry._

She pauses before penning two lines on a separate sheet.

_We're through. Thanks for the memories._

She slips the second one under a door on her way down in the guest wing and leaves the first on the dining table before quietly exiting the house and stepping into the limo that had been idling since last night, awakening the driver, who greets her quietly.

"…tawa-sama told us to take you to the airport, ojou-sama?"

* * *

**A/N: **Again, please don't kill me! And review! (I reply reviews via PM, by the way!)

I know suspense sucks so I'll do my very best to get Chapter 18 out on schedule – it isn't even written yet 'cause I only got back to my laptop on Thursday just in time to revise this to put it up on Saturday! I'll try to make the updates back to weekly now that I can actually sit at a table again without creating too much of a mess!

And I sincerely hope this chapter was worth the wait.

-iirse


	20. XVIII: Aftermath Kantou Confusion

**A/N:** If I'm posting this, I guess I wasn't murdered for the last chapter… Thank you! From what I understand, the last chapter was rather confusing towards the end. I'm sorry, but writing it explicitly didn't seem to flow. My writer's "conscience" won't let me answer what exactly happened but it would allow me to say whether your guesses are right or wrong so drop me a review/PM if you really want to know. Otherwise, all will be made clear in the subsequent chapters.

In the meantime, please enjoy and review (: -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 18 – **_**Aftermath: Kantou Confusion**_

Dressed in the fussy suit that contrasted sharply against the hot pink tracksuit of Seigaku's coach across the court, Sakaki sat on the bench for the first time this season. His appearance had turned heads. It wasn't so much the suit – that had been many years ago when he first started coaching; back when the suit had been an object for ridicule because it was so out of place on the court. No, today, it was the simple fact that he was the one there on the bench.

The whispers in the crowd were similar to incessantly buzzing bees.

Hyotei's bench coach for the whole season so far had been either Atobe Keigo or Echizen Reiko. The circuit and its spectators knew it. Sakaki's appearance had been a surprise but the gossips had initially speculated that it was merely because it was the Kantou tournament now. Its importance was far greater than previous competitions. No doubt that was the reason for the change.

No, the buzz's decibel had only increased when Hyotei's numbers distinctly lacked one Princess of Tennis.

He had watched largely in silence as he watched his team play.

Perhaps play was the wrong word, as they were getting soundly trashed by Seigaku. That resulted in an even louder buzz. Sakaki found himself at a loss for words. Even words to berate were lost to him.

By all reports from Atobe and Reiko, the team had improved significantly. Based on their reports, Oshitari and Mukahi should have been able to hold their own against Seigaku's Momoshiro and Kaidoh in Doubles 2. Yet Hyotei's second doubles pair had lost 6 games to 4.

He had expected a tiebreaker at least, if they lost.

Kabaji had always been their proof against data players. His loss in Singles 3 had been expected – the prominent data players such as Seigaku's Inui and Rikkaidai's Yanagi had long learnt to play without data if necessary to win. His game had seemed slightly off, though. Rather than indiscriminately copy whatever moves he had seen in the circuit over the years, Kabaji had never once used a move from Rikkaidai even when it would have been to his benefit. A curious preference that he wouldn't have noted, except that Oshitari and Mukahi's game had clued Sakaki in that there was something _very_ wrong with Hyotei's Regulars.

Indeed, the only players that performed up to expected standards were Shishido and Ohtori. They'd taken their Doubles 1 match against Seigaku's famed Golden Pair, 7 games to 5, which had given Hyotei their only win in this round of the tournament.

Judging from Jiroh's beginning play on court against Seigaku tensai Fuji Syuusuke, Sakaki suspected that would remain their only win.

Hyotei's sleepy volley player was yawning, but for once, he had shadows under his eyes to go with it as he received Fuji's trademark Disappearing Serve and launched into his typical play. Oddly enough, the suspected narcoleptic was silent without his normal fan boying. There was no mention of Rikkaidai's Marui or how 'sugoi' Fuji's moves were even when the tensai began utilizing his famed counters.

"30 – 15!"

Judging from the tensai's narrow-eyed look when the blonde failed to say anything when the tensai earned Seigaku another point with his Tsubame Gaeshi, Fuji had noticed too.

And wasn't going to let it go.

* * *

Up in the bleachers, Echizen Ryoga's features were creased into a frown. His eyes, so like his father's and sister's, were hard. Hyotei… wasn't performing _at all_. It wasn't just that the training camp would be for nothing. Their play was worse than when they started at training camp.

_Chibisuke, what happened now?_

Staring unseeingly at Jiroh slowly losing his game, Ryoga suddenly missed the simplicity of training camp. Every day had been spent being generally sadistic and whipping this team into shape.

Yet when they had returned…

What had happened?

From his memory of his conversations with Reiko on training after the trip, the team seemed to be improving by leaps and bounds. Scarcely a week later had been Ryoko-baa-san's birthday party and then their private after party.

And the next thing he knew, he had been woken by a call from Keigo saying that Reiko had somehow commandeered a plane and made it to his holiday villa in the South of France. He remembered that conversation all too well.

"_Talk. And it better be worth waking me up after such a late night." Ryoga growled into the phone._

"_Ryoga. Reiko's gone." Atobe's voice would have seemed normal, except that Ryoga was family and he could hear the anxious undertones even through his sleepy haze and temper._

_Keigo's tone alone would have been enough to startle him awake. Add that to mentioning a missing Chibisuke… "What do you mean gone, Keigo?"_

"_Exactly what the word means, Ryoga!" The Atobe heir vexed. "I woke up to call from _my_ French butler saying that 'Takeuchi-dono is here, Keigo-bocchama. What are your instructions?' Checking the house gave me a letter saying she's gone to think, the usual, and not to worry."_

_Ryoga's mind was running a mile a minute. Maybe even faster. "She always did go to your villa in France when she needed to get away from things. What happened, Keigo?"_

"_I don't know! Why do you think I called you?" Keigo shot back, his pacing footsteps loud and clear over the highly sensitive phone line._

"_She was at your place, not mine, Keigo." Rubbing his temples, Ryoga swore softly. It was too early in the damned morning for this. Thank kami Yumiko had already woken and left, so he wasn't disturbing her. "What did you tell your staff?"_

_Atobe huffed. "I told them to give her whatever she wants and I'll be over once I can get away. And also to keep an eye on her and report to me, discreetly."_

"_It's the best we can do then…" Ryoga sighed. "Do you want me to go?"_

_Not surprisingly, he was refused. "It happened on my watch, Ryoga. And you can't afford to. I'd fly out right now, but Kantou starts in a few days. I can't leave – that leaves my team without an alternate."_

"_Kevin?" Ryoga suggested, knowing how close his sister was to the blonde._

"_He can't leave the States until towards the end of Kantou at the earliest. I already put in calls to rush his paperwork once I got the call and saw Reiko's note." Atobe sighed. "Maybe it's for the best – it'd give her some time to clear her head before we approach her."_

"_Reiko isn't stupid." Ryoga said, wishing he sounded more convincing to himself._

_Another sigh from the Atobe heir. "I'm going to get wrinkles because of this girl… But she isn't stupid, Ryoga. Just let Rinko-baa-san and Nan-ji-chan know, will you? That she's away. No need to worry them."_

He'd barely done it when he received a text from the source of his problem. It was the only message that Reiko sent him since she left. _Anuie, when you have time, take over Hyotei for me? Domo. Don't worry._

Ryoga had done it. Sakaki hadn't known, of course – the man had assumed that Reiko was just skipping on morning meetings and letting Atobe doing the reporting and administrative liaising between team and coach. It had happened before, apparently, when Atobe lost a bet to Reiko or vice versa.

He had learnt a fair bit about how his baby sister operated in Hyotei as a result.

"_Regulars, take your things, we're going on a little day trip." Ryoga had announced. It was only his third day 'helping out.'_

_Surprisingly, Atobe didn't reinforce his order as was his wont. In front of him, Oshitari and Ohtori exchanged uneasy looks, before the latter chose to speak up. "Ano, Echizen-san… Reiko-san's rule was that at least one Regular has to stay back to supervise training even if the rest are going elsewhere."_

_A quick glance at Atobe earned a sulky nod. Ryoga chose to ask instead. "Rationale?"_

"_Approachability, team morale, and as aid for the subsequent year, Echizen-san." Ohtori summarily answered._

_He pondered the reply. It was unlike his pro circuit-playing sister to consider such things. But then, she had once been expected to take up the mantle of leadership in Seigaku… Her knowledge of such wasn't too unexpected. _Still, it would be interesting to push them a little…_ "Even so close to a major tournament?"_

"_Reiko-san never said, Echizen-san." Ohtori levelly replied. "We did initially question it, but it has proved for the best after a while."_

_Atobe leaned forward. "By questioning it, he meant that Shishido and Mukahi kicked up a fuss, and starting fighting. After that, he and Oshitari had to play mediator. Jiroh too, which is really quite rare. Hiyoshi was quite vexed, given that all he wanted to do was gekyukujo. Reiko had to wipe the courts with his__ arse__ for a week before he caved."_

_And they followed that same decree now… Ryoga raised an eyebrow at the power his little sister commanded. "How would you suggest going about this then, Ohtori-kun?"_

"_Judging from the competition we face, the games we are worst prepared for are in the semifinals and finals – probably against Seigaku and Rikkaidai. Chances are we will face the former first." Ohtori paused. "Atobe-buchou probably already has an idea of what lineup he would want to use. I'd suggest that we go based on that lineup and whoever who is the alternate for that round stay back."_

_Considering, Ryoga nodded. "Logical. Keigo?"_

"_Hiyoshi." Atobe named. _

_The aforementioned face darkened. Ryoga tsk-ed mentally. If this boy wanted to captain the team, he had better learnt something about team before dreaming, he decided. About to tongue lash the to-be-protestor, Ryoga was, however, halted by a hand on his arm. _

_Atobe gestured towards Ohtori. The tall second year had leveled a look towards Hiyoshi. It wasn't really menacing, but for some reason, Hiyoshi's protests shriveled and he nodded his acquiescence grudgingly._

"_Rei has a theory that all Hyotei Regulars are insane in some way or other. She thinks that only she and Ohtori aren't affected but she's wrong." Atobe informed Ryoga, his voice an undertone. "Ohtori has the 'insanity' as Rei-chibi puts it, but it only comes out when he's really angry. Hiyoshi knows better."_

"_Makes him a likely future captain, hm, Kei?" Ryoga had bantered back, gesturing for the members sans Hiyoshi to grab their things and follow him._

He'd trained this team and kicked their arses into shape, but they were falling flat on their face because of the fact that their bench coach wasn't their captain – Atobe was in the lineup and there was actually a possibility that they'd reach Singles 1 this time – or his sister but Sakaki.

Reiko's absence was blinding them, reminding them that there was something wrong with one of their own. And the distraction was proving too much.

"Game, Seigaku's Fuji! 5 games to 3!"

* * *

"What's going _on_, Keigo?" Nakamura Misaki's typical sweet demeanor was nowhere to be seen as she lashed out at her childhood friend from their place on the bleachers.

Atobe wasn't holding on to his fraying temper too well either. "I don't _know_, Misaki! At this point, I think Jiroh's the only one who does! He was the one who provided the limo and jet for Rei to get to my villa!"

"Can't you get _anything_ out of him?" She retaliated. "Aren't you 'the great me'?"

His eyes flashed danger. "Jiroh would say something if he felt we should know. He's _not_ the enemy, Misaki. And neither am I. None of us have _any_ clue what's going on!"

"Jiroh would know?" Misaki's voice rose in pitch and volume, her elegant manicured hand gesturing violently towards the court where Jiroh was losing match game. "All he says is that it's bad and it isn't his place to say!"

Atobe remained silent. His migraine just felt worse.

Misaki continued raging. "Reiko's my best girl friend, Keigo! And I have no clue what might be wrong. I keep playing back all our recent conversations as to what's wrong. It can't be us. She hasn't mentioned family in ages. The only thing I can think of is her _boyfriend_." She spat the word out as though it were poison.

"I thought you encouraged them." The infamous Takeuchi eyebrow raised itself on reflex.

The diva received a dark glare for his trouble. "He's the only possibility I can think of, Keigo! The last things she was fretting over all had to do with him!

"Reiko was going on about how she felt bad for bringing up his illness in middle school along with Kevin. She said something like she worried he would get jealous irrationally, and whether he would get over it or not." Misaki deflated slightly. "She's insecure in this, Keigo. It _is_ her first relationship after all!"

"You think I don't know that?" Atobe retorted. "She's your best friend, but she's _my _baby cousin. I know all this, Misaki!"

Immediately, the heiress was back on the defensive. "Yet you do nothing! She asking me so many hypothetical questions, Keigo! Did she tell you that she once fought with Yukimura because she was wishing she won't be teased and he took it the wrong way? Did she?" Misaki looked satisfied at the startled look on Atobe's features. "He got over it really fast, but it always made her wonder if he would do the same always or would he bear grudge the way he does towards others the way she knows he does. You know nothing!"

"Ore-sama would disprove that statement, Misaki." Atobe coolly shot back, his voice all ice. The stress of running the team as though he were still doing it with Reiko, handling Kevin's transfer and hastening it, and not to mention worrying over the missing Reiko… It was all getting under his skin. How could Misaki who had known him since they were children say all this? "Reiko never did tell you why exactly she transferred, did she?"

Misaki paled at the jibe.

"Ore-sama thought not." Atobe viciously drove the point home. "My cousin transferred because she wanted to be able to challenge other players without censure, because she was tired of being questioned. She was tired of the fact that her own brother couldn't seem to trust her.

"Ore-sama does nothing not because ore-sama doesn't care, Nakamura Misaki." He finished. "Ore-sama does this because ore-sama trusts that Reiko won't do anything stupid, that she knows what's best for her and everyone else. Think about _that_."

Misaki could only watch, silent, as the diva stalked away from her and out of match grounds.

Down on the court, the referee announced. "Game, set, match to Seigaku's Fuji. 6 games to 3!"

What was the point in staying? They had just lost the round anyway.

* * *

Atobe was seething as he stalking out of the tournament, barely sparing Jiroh a nod as the blonde accepted the traditional handshake from Fuji. He was so fed up that he didn't register a redhead and raven exchange looks and before following him.

In fact, he didn't register them until he paused in a relatively isolated area to rub at his temples in aggravation and they made their presence known.

"Hoi, Atobe!" Kikumaru called.

Any lesser person would have groaned, and it took all Atobe's resolve to bite his despair back. _Can't they just leave me alone?_ "Kikumaru. Momoshiro." He acknowledged curtly. "Ore-sama'd think that Tezuka won't want you fraternizing with the enemy."

"Psh!" Momoshiro flapped; it was a gesture reminiscent of Shishido to Ohtori, in Atobe's opinion, and only reminded him of how badly Hyotei had done that only Doubles 1 didn't lose – coincidentally, they were the only people missing from the after party.

Kikumaru evidently agreed with his underclassman. "Tezuka can stuff it nya! I want to know! Where's ochibi-chan?"

"If she didn't inform you, Kikumaru, ore-sama doubts she wants you to know." Atobe silkily replied, frustrated. Seigaku didn't know anything and didn't need to know anything, really.

A watery pout was beginning to form on the redhead's face. Unfortunately, Atobe was used to such machinations from Jiroh and (occasionally) Mukahi. Momoshiro protested, however. "She might be in Hyotei, Atobe, but Echizen's still a friend!"

"You've hardly spoken to _ore-sama's_ cousin." The diva couldn't help but point out.

Momoshiro shrugged. "We double dated once, a while back. Other than that, you know that training has stepped up. Between dating a guy from another school – hell, a different area – and her own school activities, Echizen doesn't have time. You would hardly see her if she weren't in Hyotei!"

"Just tell us, nya!" Kikumaru burst out.

Atobe's eyebrow rose involuntarily. Reiko would kill him if he started anything false. _But I do need to give them a bone to chew on... Rei would understand that as well. I hope._ "Rei's out of the country handling personal business, Kikumaru."

"Personal as in heiress business or personal as in personal?" The redhead prodded.

Atobe wanted to stab someone. Really. Couldn't Kikumaru just leave it alone and accept the answer he was getting? Now he had to decide whether to lie or not… Thankfully, Oshitari's voice came calling just then. "Atobe!"

"Oshitari." He greeted, trying to mask his relief. Judging from the gleam in the tensai's eye, he hadn't succeeded. No doubt the tensai would blackmail him with it later on. He noted the others who had followed. "Ohtori. Jiroh."

"Sakaki's cleared it, Atobe. Go." Oshitari succinctly told him. A look from the tensai had the Seigaku players scurrying away. They pretended to be distracted by a nearby vending machine to eavesdrop.

Atobe raised an eyebrow. "You asked?" Let Seigaku eavesdrop, they won't be able to make much sense of things anyway. Not that he knew much as of now, but they knew even less.

"We did, Atobe-buchou." Ohtori replied, respectful as ever. "With all due respect, we can take third place without you. It won't have a chance to reach Singles 1. What needs to be done will be done."

"Ore-sama is surprised Sakaki agreed."

To the Seigaku players' surprise, it was Jiroh who spoke. His voice was serious. "I unleashed my 'Hyotei insanity,' Keigo. You know how it is. I rarely interfere so when I do, Sakaki tends to know it's serious. Go. I already had the limo and plane arranged."

"Again." Atobe deadpanned. A half smile crossed his lips. "We underestimate you, Jiroh." He looked at Oshitari before cutting his eyes to Ohtori.

The tensai smirked, getting the message. "In the interim?"

"You are technically fukubuchou, Oshitari." Atobe mirrored his smirk. "Ohtori?"

"Hai!" The lone Hyotei second year snapped to attention.

"You're interim fukubuchou while Oshitari attempts to fill in ore-sama's shoes." He blithely ignored the sputtering this produced. "He will fail, of course. But he will try nonetheless."

With a half wave of his hand, Atobe walked off heading for the exit of tournament grounds.

* * *

Scarcely an hour later found Fuji pacing the length of his room, wearing a tread into the wooden floor of his room. He had overheard the Hyotei players' conversation, and unlike Eiji and Momoshiro, he had managed to put it to better context than them. And he had been pondering it since he returned home and locked himself in his room, to Rinko's silent worry.

"_Rei's out of the country handling personal business, Kikumaru."_

Atobe would never consider Reiko's duties as Takeuchi heiress business. That would come under family matters. The cousins tended to use the same terminology when it came to such matters, and the past years with Reiko had taught him a thing or two.

Personal meant personal in the truest sense of the word.

When Reiko was out of the country for personal business it meant she was thinking. That meant that there was a problem.

"… _Go. I already had the limo and plane arranged."_

"_Again."_

Oddly enough, it was Jiroh not Atobe who arranged the transport to meet Reiko. And if Atobe's response was any indication, Akutagawa probably arranged Reiko's transport to leave the country as well.

As Atobe heir, the diva had access to the family's private plane. In much the same way, Reiko had access to the Takeuchi's private transport as well. She's used it on multiple occasions while playing pro circuits and juggling her duties as heiress. Fuji recalled having been in France when she played the French Open for a photography competition. It was then when Reiko flew to England on a day that she didn't have a match to settle business before returning the same night in order to play quarterfinals the next day.

It was odd then that the conversation suggested that Jiroh was the one who used his connections as part of the Akutagawa family – not even the heir – to arrange for the private transport to wherever Reiko was for both cousins.

Fuji let his perpetual smile slip into a frown instead as he considered the idea that occurred to him then. Could it be that Atobe knew barely anything beyond that Reiko was away thinking? And that someone else knew more than Reiko's cousin did?

… That someone else knew more than her _family_ did? Fuji realized, thinking back on Ryoga's behavior in the week.

His brother-in-law had returned from training Hyotei in a jovial mood. He and his father-in-law had spent many a day discussing matches that had occurred between Hyotei and Rikkaidai on their last day there.

It wasn't till after a particular late night – a party at the Atobe's that Seigaku had turned down en masse – that Ryoga's mood had changed. The elder male had become snappish whenever they ran into one another. Fuji was quite sure it wasn't him, given how Ryoga's treatment of him hadn't changed even when Reiko had lost her temper and transferred to Hyotei and they'd essentially fallen out.

But well, Reiko wasn't much of a tattletale.

Atobe, though, would have told Ryoga. Which meant that Yumiko-nee-san probably intervened and stayed her husband's fury at any mistreatment (as Ryoga would see it) of his little sister.

He wondered, though, why Atobe wasn't dead yet. Whatever had happened to Reiko happened on Atobe's watch, certainly. While Fuji wasn't as certain as he used to be that he had taken the right actions in trying to protect Reiko… Well, Atobe had failed, hadn't he?

Cerulean eyes narrowed. Perhaps… Atobe wasn't dead because even Ryoga didn't know what was wrong. It would certainly explain Ryoga's almost anxious behavior. If he didn't know what was wrong, he wouldn't know who to blame.

_If Atobe doesn't know, and Ryoga doesn't know… I highly doubt Rikkaidai does…_ Fuji realized, his inner sadist starting to smirk.

For all that he felt that Yukimura had too much potential to hurt Reiko, they had that 'slightly' sadistic streak in common, and really… Sadists and disappearing acts don't go well hand-in-hand. He had lashed out at anyone and everyone when Reiko and Yuuta transferred. Now that Reiko disappeared without a word, no doubt Rikkaidai was suffering.

_They would want to know why they are suffering too. Perhaps…_ Reaching for his phone, Fuji stopped his pacing and settled on the bed, setting his plans in motion.

* * *

Having slaughtered their opponents in the Kantou semifinals with ease as always, Niou had been expecting to be free afterwards to hang out at Yagyuu's. His Hiro-chan did owe him from way back, after all. Unfortunately for our favorite Platinum Pair, they were hauled back to Kanagawa for more training that lasted till sunset. Considering how early their matches ended, it had been a very long day.

The Troika had dispersed immediately after dismissing them, and left the keys to the next most responsible person: Jackal. The Brazilian teen was seated in front of his locker, leaning against it and snoozing in exhaustion when Rikkai's Trouble Trio and Yagyuu came out from the showers. He hadn't had the energy to try and manage their madness and had escaped as soon as he was done, leaving Yagyuu to handle the chaos.

"Kami-sama, please spare us another day of hell." Marui muttered as he nudged his half-asleep doubles partner aside so he could open his own locker to get his clothes. No way was he wearing the jersey back – he had stunk up both of them after the match in the morning and then the spare during training.

Opposite him, Niou voiced his agreement as he put on one of his peculiar shirts paired with cargo pants. "Today was _hell_. 'Mura was scary, puri!" The Trickster canted his head to aside to look at Yagyuu, who was opening his locker, two doors down. "Don't you think it's weird that he chose to take Singles 3 rather than Singles 1 so late in the tournament?"

"Probably got bored again." The redhead interjected, slipping on street clothes – dark washed jeans and a shirt the exact shade of his favorite gum – which he promptly popped right then.

Yagyuu shook his head in dissent, closing his locker after he'd taken out his things – he'd dressed in the showers unlike the Trouble Trio. "Normally I would agree, Marui-kun, but Yukimura's game today was, for lack of a better word, brutal."

"It was a slaughter, puri." Turning around, Niou did a double take. "Marui, what the hell? Are those girl jeans? Does your sister know you took her skinnies?"

Rikkaidai's self-proclaimed tensai's face turned a red to rival his hair. Oh wait, according to Niou, his hair was pink. Well, Mukahi's hair then. "Shut up, Niou! This is my clubbing pair; I took the wrong pair this morning!"

"Didn't dare to be late, did you?" The silverette mocked, moving to sit in front of Yagyuu so his doubles partner could fix his usual rat's tail.

Akaya chose then to add his voice to the reemerging chaos now that he was dressed in pants and shirt like Niou, only that by chance, his shirt actually matched his eyes rather well. "You weren't pranking today either, Niou-senpai."

"That's true." Jackal commented, woken by the conversation. "A sign that this tension is killing us, for sure, seeing how the Trouble Trio actually behaved themselves."

"Or at least behaved themselves until the source of tension left." Yagyuu replied with a sigh. He and Jackal had that in common: troublemaking doubles partners. Though Jackal wondered at that, given how often Yagyuu and Niou enjoyed switching until you never knew who was who. "It's the only blessing of having Yukimura in a foul mood. I'm wondering if this mild peace is worth his bad temper."

The rest of the occupants of the clubroom shuddered, staring at him as though he'd grown another head. "I rather have these three wrecking their usual havoc than keeping the source of tension nearby so they will behave, Yagyuu." Jackal was pale despite his dark skin at the thought of having Yukimura around in a perpetual temper.

Niou grinned. "Glad to know we're loved for our chaos, Jackal!"

"Wait… What do you mean source, Jackal-senpai?" Akaya piped up suddenly, as a thought occurred to him.

It suddenly became Akaya's turn to be stared at, rather than Yagyuu. "Seaweed head, are you immune to the tension that was in the air the _whole day_ today?" Marui finally broke the silence of disbelief.

"Shut up, Marui-senpai! At least I'm taller than you!" The lone second-year glared and pouted at the same time.

Reaching over to make the Devil's hair even more seaweed-like, Niou smirked at Marui. "You have to admit he's got you there, Fatty-Shorty."

"Oh shut up, Niou. We all know you're whipped." The redhead retorted. A glint from Yagyuu's glasses silenced their descent into innuendo and double entendre.

"Kirihara-kun, what did you mean by asking Jackal about 'source'?" The Gentleman redirected their conversation. "You can't tell us you didn't realize what a bad mood Yukimura was in."

Back on track, Akaya blinked at them. "You have to be blind, deaf and stupid to not realize 'Mura-buchou was in a bad mood, senpai-tachi! And we can't be blind and deaf to play tennis, can we?" The seaweed head shook. "I just thought it was weird you said 'source' when it wasn't only 'Mura-buchou though. I thought fukubuchou was acting weird too. He kept giving buchou furtive looks, like he had a guilty conscience or something… But he was rather pissy too; for all that he didn't have a chance to tarundoru anyone."

"Whoa, you know a word like 'furtive'?" Niou pretended shock, only to be silenced by his doubles partner's pointed look.

Under his breath, Marui muttered to Jackal. "Whipped."

"I highly doubt so, Kirihara-kun." Yagyuu considered. "Yukimura was treating Sanada in much the same way he always does… And Sanada didn't seem very different beyond the fact that Yukimura took over issuing punishments. Granted, we hardly paid him any attention today, seeing how we were distracted by Yukimura's uncharacteristic behavior. He's probably just concerned for a friend. It's not everyday Yukimura behaves like this, after all. But I should commend you on the improvement in your vocabulary, of course. I'm glad that you're putting effort into academics. It'll serve you well."

The Trickster leaned against him then. "What I said, just said nicer, Hiro-chan."

"Phrasing is everything, Masaharu." His doubles partner returned, before freezing. "And what just vibrated, pray tell?"

Across the clubroom, Marui choked on his gum.

Niou smirked knowingly at Yagyuu. "My phone, of course." Reading it, he paled ever so slightly.

Concerned, Yagyuu leaned over to read it. "It isn't anything too bad, Masaharu…"

"Join the dots, Hiroshi." The Trickster shakily replied, his mind obviously drawing connections faster than his partner on his occasion. The remaining occupants of the room exchanged curious looks as even Yagyuu looked wan at the thought that occurred to him. "Exactly."

Akaya chose then to interrupt their awkward silence. "If you two aren't going to share, senpai, let's go get food! I'm starving after the training 'Mura-buchou put us through." He bounded to the door, tennis bag over his shoulder, quickly followed by Marui and Jackal. They all knew from experience that Rikkaidai's Doubles 1 had their secrets, and had learnt to tell when they wanted to share them.

Exchanging an uneasy look, the Platinum Pair trailed after the rest through the door, leaving the Rikkaidai Tennis Clubroom in darkness.

* * *

_Please, be alright._

Atobe nods haughtily on reflex at the staff that usher him into Jiroh's private family plane. He checks his phone out of habit for any messages as he seats himself, praying to find one from his baby cousin, only to see none. Quickly, he punches one off to Ryoga to tell his only other cousin that he's on the way to his French villa and Reiko.

_It's just a few more hours before I get there, Rei-chibi. Just please be okay…_

* * *

**A/N: **I suspect this chapter isn't exactly what was expected but it was _necessary_. I do hope it answered some of the questions/confusion I wrought in the previous chapter with regard to who went away and whatnot! It isn't completely clear and I know I raised more question marks as well, but I have to beg your patience for the next chapter where yes, I will actually spell it out – I think. Assuming Reiko and Atobe cooperate and not run away with my plot again!

Review! And if you do, sign into your account 'cause that's how I reply reviews (via PM) (: -iirse


	21. XIX: Torn

**A/N:** Apparently, I wrecked more havoc with the last chapter again. Oops. And I have to say that I probably will (again) in this chapter. Double oops.

All I can say about that is that I'm just reminding you, dear reader, that there's more than just Seiichi-Reiko drama to resolve. Seigaku's conflict with Reiko (primarily Syuusuke and Tezuka) still exists. And there's the question of Atobe and Sanada (which actually links in with Seii-Rei) to resolve. I hope that excuses (at least to some degree) my tendency towards wrecking more havoc, adding more little things that don't make sense just yet, etc.

Anyway, as promised, this chapter answers the questions as to just what happened exactly towards the end of _Chapter 17 – Drama Central 101_, if you haven't caught on yet! I hope it lives up to expectations despite its rather short length; do enjoy! -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 19 – **_**Torn**_

Sitting on the edge of the natural jetty, she stared unseeingly out at the water. Across the picturesque sky, Reiko didn't see the cloud formations, but rather images from the past.

Contrary to popular belief, Seiichi hadn't been her first boyfriend.

That was one secret that Kevin, and only Kevin, knew.

She had just reached the top of the pro circuits back then, a short year after she left Seigaku, when she met another young player like her at one of those damnable parties that her manager had managed to coerce her into attending. Startlingly, they had clicked, and they had dated.

It wasn't till a few months later, when Kevin had dragged her to a club – he somehow managed to sneak them in – that she had saw him making out with some nameless girl. At first, she had thought that perhaps he was drunk, but when her sharp ears picked up their conversation over the club music…

"_When will you be done with that child, darling? I miss having you around."_

"_Let me get what I can out of her first, babe. You do want me to succeed, don't you? To reach the top?"_

That was when she snapped. At that point in time, she was already being trained as Takeuchi heiress, so she reined in the instinct to fling something at them – her aim was impeccable, after all. No, she simply played along, continuing to appear to be the guileless girlfriend.

But in actuality… In actuality, she was manipulating her games so she would face him in competition, and when she did, she destroyed him on the courts. Then she publicly announced she couldn't date a guy who couldn't keep up with her. Following that, Reiko had made use of her family's information network to find out everything about him and the girl in the club, before using what connections she had to destroy them.

Cold. Vicious. Utterly vindictive.

Kevin had caught her making contact with the head of that operation, so to speak, and wrung the story out of her. It was only then that Reiko had broken down and cried.

After that, she learnt that the circuit was all quicksand and suspicion. There was no room to trust. And when Inui leaked her number to Yanagi so long ago… It hit too close to home, and she'd closed off. Sometimes, she did wonder what Tezuka was thinking back then: Inui had all the data and actually passed on some information before (albeit minor information), yet he wasn't censured. And she had done _nothing_ but play one doubles game and garnered his disapproval.

But it wasn't the point, really.

_I trusted you, Seii. I trusted you not to try and use our relationship to put Rikkai in the advantage. To try and mess me up in the hopes that Hyotei would be affected and easier to defeat._

She tilted her head back, trying to push back the tears that formed at the memory of what she saw in her tipsy haze, but the image refused to be blocked out, dancing on the back of her eyelids as clear as the photo that Jiroh had somehow obtained and slid under her old room in the nursery wing. How he had managed to locate her in the massive Atobe estate was a mystery, but Reiko supposed she should thank the narcoleptic.

_Otherwise, without the photographic proof, I might have thought it was just an alcohol-induced hallucination. Because I thought we had something real, Seii._

In her mind's eye, she saw it again, and remembered how real it had seemed.

It had been after the training camp, and both teams had decided that in light of their improvement at camp, they could cancel just one day of training. She'd met Seiichi in Kanagawa instead of him coming to Tokyo for once.

"Where are we going?" Reiko had asked, curious as he'd told her to dress nice and nothing more than that. She was certain they weren't about to be playing tennis, but that was it.

Seiichi merely smiled at her, and led her towards a restaurant. It was nothing huge and ritzy like those that Keigo frequented, but rather quaint and elegant. "I've wanted to take you here for a while. Okaa-san raves about this place."

While Reiko never enjoyed restaurants, she found that she actually rather liked this one. The food was good, and had the touch of home cooked rather than professionally prepared, and the atmosphere cozy. Back then, she had seen it was a compromise – a proper date for Seiichi without making her uncomfortable.

Now… She didn't know what to think anymore. Was it even real?

"Rei?" A call from behind snapped her out of her train of thought.

_Please don't make me destroy you, Seiichi. If I don't, Keigo would._

Reiko turned. "Hey, Kei-nii."

* * *

"_You know how they call Seii and me the power couple of the circuit? Well, we're not. In actuality, the power couple of the circuit belongs to Rikkaidai in its entirety."_

"_You don't mean to say…?"_

"_Yes, I do mean to say."_

Atobe slammed his laptop shut, rubbing his temples in frustration. Attempting to work on the presentation that he was due to deliver to the German branch on Friday when he was so distracted was certainly failing. He'd started on it in the hopes of clearing his mind, but it obviously wasn't working, considering that the conversation he had with Reiko was playing on repeat in his mind to the point that he couldn't concentrate.

The diva still could remember the first thought that occurred to him: _So you finally caved, did you, Sanada?_

The next had been _it's all my fault, I should have warned them_.

The guilt ate at him, because he had known.

All those interrupted rants had always been neatly cut at the point where he was about to tell Sanada to stop being so desperate, to stop pining over someone who obviously saw him only as a friend. Hell, if Yukimura had been interested, didn't Rikkai's Emperor think that he'd have done something about it long ago? – especially since they'd known each other since middle school at least!

Yet Atobe had kept mum.

_I don't know why I did_.

But that was a lie, Atobe knew. There was no point lying to himself any longer. Misaki was right. Reiko was right. 'Keisaki,' as Oshitari so affectionately termed it, didn't exist. At least on his part, it didn't. He couldn't speak for Misaki.

_No, considering the circumstances, the time for denial is over. _

Atobe had known all along that Sanada had harbored more than platonic feelings for his captain – it had been more than obvious even back in middle school. Especially back in middle school, when Yukimura had been sick and unable to play. The determination he had displayed at Kantou back then, and his dismay when he had lost was more than what a vice-captain and friend would have felt and shown, no matter how close.

Yet he always avoided speaking of Sanada's attraction to Yukimura point blank, because some part of him hoped that it was untrue – no matter how much evidence to the contrary. And another part didn't want to be shunned completely from the Emperor's 'social circle,' so to speak. That would have happened if he had bluntly said it aloud.

What was that phrase again? All or nothing? Well, Atobe always thought himself as an 'all or nothing' type of person, but it seemed that in this case, he leaned towards 'something is better than nothing.'

And now… He recalled Reiko's detached expression as she blandly told him what happened.

"_I'm sure you know I stayed after the rest of you went upstairs, but I headed to get some water to try and prevent hangovers. When I came back, I saw Seii making out with Sanada. I'm not sure what happened after that, but when I snapped out of it, it was barely daylight and I was in my room in the nursery wing. I found a photo of what I saw the night before in an envelope that I presumed was slipped under the door, since I apparently had locked it. It was only signed 'AJ.' I returned to my usual room after that, packed light and wrote the notes without waking Misaki-senpai. After I dropped them off, I headed out only to be met by a limo arranged by Jiroh-senpai, who also arranged my plane and other transport here. I can only presume that the photograph was his work as well, since it is his initials."_

The guilt nagged at him. It made him wonder what or if anything would have been different if he had said it bluntly rather than go into his rants and cryptic speech. It took much restraint for Atobe not to scream in frustration. He settled for flinging himself upon the duvet on his large bed, closing his eyes against the building migraine. God, he was going to end up with a killer headache like Tezuka and… Sanada.

He wanted so badly to erase that name, that face from his memory.

Because now… Now it was a searing reminder that brought to the forefront of his mind the memory of Rei's expression. It was _never_ detached. Never so cold. Not unless she was so drained emotionally that she couldn't find it in her to even put up an act. Atobe wished she would smirk or mock him or even rage at him – something, anything, was better than this!

And he hadn't told her, hadn't warned her except cryptically, hoping that things would stay in this state forever – him in denial, Rei and Yukimura happy together, Sanada staying silent.

Now, she was paying the price.

Reiko was his baby cousin, his only precious baby cousin. Across the movie screen of his mind, memories flashed. _Playing together as children. Reuniting in the middle school circuits after the first game where she called him Monkey King. When she gave him that damnable shirt with the caricature of her saving his head. When they mock-dated to piss Fuji off – and the look on the tensai's face when Atobe was revealed as a cousin at the next family gathering. _

He knew what he had to do, of course. It hadn't been said till his mother's birthday party but he long knew that family took care of one another. In their family, they took it one step further: hurt one of ours, and we destroy you. Atobe knew that their grandfather would find out eventually. And knowing Takeuchi Ryou, he would expect Atobe to use both Takeuchi and Atobe names to wreak havoc on the culprit.

He had a choice to make.

Atobe knew that Yukimura was likely drunk. Rikkai's captain's alcohol tolerance was abysmal, and judging from the times that they had crossed paths in parties with alcohol, Yukimura was on the verge of passing out when Atobe (and subsequently Reiko) had left. Chances were that he was out cold when Sanada instigated things. Reiko had been tipsy as well, it wouldn't be surprising for her to have seen Sanada possibly lip-raping her ex-boyfriend and then take it as a make out session between consenting partners.

He could tell their grandfather that, destroy Sanada and cut him out of their society. Out of sight, out of mind. The Atobe and Takeuchi names alone would have nearly enough clout. Atobe wasn't deluding himself on the amount of power his family names held. Maybe then Rei and Yukimura would suspect that there was something wrong and patch up. It was a shot in the dark, but a chance nonetheless that she could regain that glow she had when they were dating.

Or he could let things run its course with no intervention. Let the destruction happen to Yukimura instead. Equally destructive. Atobe chose to block whatever fantasy-relationship he could have after that, but the vague reminder remained.

The question still remained: Reiko or himself?

Or more simply put: family and duty, or love?

_If only I could just do nothing._ But duty demanded otherwise.

* * *

Absently, Reiko wandered the massive library that took up an entire floor of the villa. It spoke of old world elegance that her cousin enjoyed on occasion – it was why Hyotei's photos at Atobe events were always taken on the grand stair. Normally, she found it too opulent, but right now, it was comforting.

It was so unlike the homely atmosphere that exuded from her minimalist comfort-driven room that was much like her boyfriend's. Oh wait, make that 'ex-boyfriend.' Reiko had forgotten for a moment that she had technically broken up with him. Via letter – rather wimpy of her, but still! It counted.

She slid out her vibrating phone.

_Call: Yukimura Seiichi_

Reiko stared at it. It wasn't the first call she was receiving from him. The heiress's phone was been spammed by texts and calls from the aforementioned person since she landed in France. The texts had been deleted unread and the calls… She pressed 'reject' for the umpteenth time.

Only Rikkai's captain had been foolish enough to try and call her.

Echizen Reiko never answered the phone when upset. It would figure that he didn't know that.

Others knew better. Ryoga had answered her only text in the affirmative, and conveying what brotherly worry he could. Keigo had sent a message through the French butler that he was keeping an eye on her and would be there as soon as possible. Jiroh had sent the regards of Hyotei's team and told her to take care… Along with too much pocky.

_Text: Nakamura Misaki_

And Misaki had sent a message every other day. They'd been deleted unread after the first time. But Kei hadn't mentioned a word of Misaki since arriving, which was odd in itself.

Sighing, Reiko caved and pressed 'read.' _Reiko-chan, I don't know what's going on (Jiroh refuses to say) but I do know Keigo's over there. We're worried. Please, if you wish to keep mum, at least reply. I don't know if you're okay, and it's terrifying me._

It was probably incredibly similar to other messages that had been relegated to the trash. As a rule, Echizen Reiko didn't read spam-texts. Nonetheless, Misaki deserved an answer at the very least.

_I'm fine, senpai. I'm sure Kei has told you already. _Mid-text, her phone buzzed with another call. Sighing, Reiko rejected it – Yukimura again. _I'm turning off my phone now, so don't worry if I don't reply._

Doing exactly that, she settled into one of the window seats, allowing her thoughts to meander back to her ex-boyfriend and how everything went from perfectly fine to abysmally wrong.

_Did you even date me because you liked me, Seiichi?_

"Atobe-bocchama, there's a call for you from a Smith Kevin." The butler bowed. "He insists it's urgent, and demanded I interrupt your meal with ojou-sama."

It wasn't much of a meal, Atobe reflected, as his cousin sat to his right, playing with her food and barely eating it. "I'll take it." He replied imperiously.

"_Atobe. Put me on speaker? It's a conference call." _Kevin's voice was bereft of its normal joking tone.

The diva raised the infamous eyebrow, but conceded to the request. "You're on, Kevin." Reiko's head jerked up at the name – she obviously hadn't been listening when the butler had spoken – but she remained otherwise silent as he perused the list of numbers. "Jiroh? Oshitari? A _four-way_ conference call between France, Japan and the States, Smith?"

"Kev, you're insane." Reiko drily intoned; her voice deadpan. "How on earth are you going to pay for that?"

"It's good to hear your voice too, Reiko-hime-sama." Kevin mockingly replied. "If you must know, I reversed charges on Oshitari. I called for business."

Atobe couldn't resist. "Oshitari, Jiroh, since when did business involve this brat?"

"Tennis, Atobe." Oshitari snapped.

Jiroh interrupted before the others could launch another sniping war. "We don't have time for this. Atobe. We got third place, as promised. Chou-chan's doing well as interim fukubuchou. He does more than Yuushi, I swear. It's finals that are an issue."

Reiko's back had automatically stiffened, Atobe absently noted, as she snapped. "What does finals have to do with anything? We lost at semi-finals. Finals have _nothing_ to do with us. Unless we're talking about Nationals but that competition is next month. Either way, there was no point on putting this on speaker – I'm not going back."

Atobe stared impassively at his cousin. It was an issue they had been arguing over for the past two days he had been here.

"Hyotei won't make it to Nationals' finals if _you_ don't listen, Ray." Kevin answered for the Hyotei players still in Japan, pausing. When Reiko made no reply, he continued. "It was a slaughter."

"Explain." Atobe took over. Slaughter wasn't quite Seigaku's style except for one Fuji Syuusuke, so if his suspicions were right…

… They were. "The Demons, sans Yanagi, simply slaughtered Seigaku." Oshitari's voice was tinged in fear. Any animal in a ten mile radius from his location probably could sniff it out, if Atobe and Reiko could hear it. "Kirihara sat it out, but he was pale and looked sick the whole time – he was terrified. Niou and Yagyuu lost to the Golden Pair, Yanagi lost to Inui again… But Doubles 1 was lost on purpose. I suspect Singles 3 was too. Tezuka was rendered useless – blind, deaf and stupid, on the courts in Singles 2." He tactfully avoided naming Yukimura, but the implication was clear enough for the cousins. "Fuji, under onslaught from Sanada, lost Singles 1.

"Rikkai took the Kantou championship back mercilessly."

Silence permeated the room.

Jiroh softly added. "Even the rest of Rikkaidai looked sick during those matches. The stands were silent."

"Do you understand now?" Kevin put in his two cents worth. "Would you have them go for Nationals blindly, going for it unprepared, Rei?"

The unspoken words were clear: _We need you to come back._

* * *

It was barely twelve hours later when a limo rolled up to the villa, and a bleached blonde head exited it, bounding up to the main house.

Kevin Smith was greeted in the foyer by Atobe Keigo. "Rei's in her room. Thinking. She won't let me in, but maybe she would listen to reason if it came from someone without a vested interest in seeing her back in Hyotei."

"I understand." The blonde nodded. "Go do your business presentation… thing."

Tipping his head in silent acknowledgement, Atobe started out. "I'll see you two back in Japan once I'm done in Germany then. Ja."

Kevin dropped another nod. Not bothering to watch the Atobe heir go, he made for the stairs, leaving his duffle in the foyer – a servant would bring it up to his usual room later anyway. Instead, he headed for Reiko's room.

The plain cream door, just like the other two on that corridor, was shut as he had expected. Still, a boy could hope. Sighing, Kevin knocked. "Ray, open up. It's me."

"I know it's you, peroxide head." Her waspish reply easily carried. "Kei knocked before he left."

It figured that Atobe wouldn't leave without letting his baby cousin know. Kevin chose to ignore the damnable nickname. At least she was alive enough to insult him. "Let me in, Ray. Come on."

"Swear you won't try and talk me into going back." Reiko demanded, her footsteps coming closer towards the door.

Kevin rolled his eyes. "You know I can't do that, Ray. But you also know your best friend can easily pick locks." It was a convenient talent, he had to admit.

"I hate you and your bleached hair. Who said you were my best friend anyway?" Reiko muttered as she opened the door, heading back to flop on her bed. "Shoot."

"Sweet as always, Ray. _You_ were the one to declare us best friends yourself at the party after the French Open. Oh, the scandals after that…" The blonde chose to settle into one of the beanbags that Reiko had scattered around the suite as was her wont. All her rooms looked the same, regardless of location, honestly. "You shoot. Atobe refused to fill me in."

"Hell, I was drunk, Kev. Like hell I'd date you. You're still mada mada…" She muttered. The use of her catch phrase comforted Kevin a little: it proved that she was still _herself _to some degree.

"Oh, shut up. I get that we know too much of each other's flaws to ever date." The blonde retorted, steering the conversation back to where he wanted it. "Talk. What happened? Atobe's as tightlipped as a clam."

"It would be _just _like Kei…" Reiko muttered. Taking a deep breath, she let it out in a sentence she knew her best friend would understand. "Seiic – Yukimura proved to be just like _him_."

"He did _not._" Kevin flatly replied in disbelief, when his mind finally comprehended what she meant. The image that he had of Reiko's ex and her not-so-current boyfriends were completely different in his head.

Reiko shrugged off his denial. "He did. Photographic proof. I left it in Japan though. Ask Jiroh-senpai. I thought since it was only the high school circuit, the whole quicksand thing wouldn't be as bad. But who knew. He would survive well in the pro circuits."

Her best friend connected the dots easily. "So you're refusing to go back because summarily, your boyfriend – "

"Ex-boyfriend." The girl interjected.

"Ex-boyfriend," Kevin conceded. "Your ex-boyfriend was trying to make use of you to come out top in the high school circuit."

Reiko shrugged. "For a blonde, you sure pick up fast, peroxide head."

"And for an Asian, you're surprising stupid." The (natural, or so he claimed) blonde shot back. They did so enjoy playing on stereotypes. When Reiko made no reply and kept her back to him, he bulldozed on. "What did you do the last time, Ray, answer me that?"

Her back was turned to him, her face upturned towards the window that took up the entire stretch of wall above her bed, when Reiko answered. "You know what I did, Kev."

"I do, but do you?" Kevin demanded, his voice getting stronger as he went on. "You destroyed the guy, Ray. You walked onto the court pretending to be a guileless young thing, and walked off it a powerful person. Then you proceeded to destroy him _and_ that girl. Where's that powerful girl now, Ray? Why are you hiding?"

When Reiko's eyes met his, they were shining. "I never really felt much with _him_, Kev. But with Seii, I thought it was really real. I don't think I _can_ walk on that court to destroy him. I don't think I can even pick up the phone to make the necessary calls to destroy him."

"So you would… Do what?" Kevin asked, at a loss. This was his best friend, on the verge of crying. Echizen Reiko hardly ever cried. He didn't need one hand to count the number of times she had. That was how few they were. Yet he didn't want her to _throw it all away_ over some guy.

Reiko shrugged. Truth be told, she wasn't too sure herself. "Probably go back to the pro circuits? I can take those correspondent courses to finish high school – I'm already third year caliber anyway. I know his mother wants him to finish university before going pro, so I'll have a few years to make my mark before I retire to become Takeuchi Reiko, heiress extraordinaire."

"Heiress? His family runs in your circles too, Reiko. You can't run forever." Her best friend reminded her.

Again, she shrugged. "I can try. We do a lot of hosting, Kev. I don't need to go to other parties much, and mine and Kei's… Well, we have full control. If it happens, I'll deal with it then."

"You would leave Hyotei to crash and burn, then?" Kevin softly asked, playing the last card in his hand. It had suddenly occurred to him, and it wasn't a nice card. But it was the only one he had left, and he had to try. "Maybe this… cowardice can be excused, Echizen Reiko, but disloyalty? I never thought it of you."

Instantly, the Princess recoiled as though slapped. "Hyotei has Kei. Has anuie. Will have _you_. They don't need me."

"If they didn't need you, they won't have lost as horribly as they did to Seigaku." Kevin retorted. "I saw the tapes. I don't know if Keigo showed them to you, but it was absurd. It was a complete mockery of tennis."

Reiko stared at him. It was obvious to the blonde that Atobe had neglected to mention this to his cousin. Or perhaps she hadn't given him the chance to.

"Only your Silver Pair won against Seigaku's Golden. The rest of the matches were so ridiculous you won't think Hyotei was a seeded school." Kevin elaborated. "Jiroh, Oshitari, and uh… Oshitari's redhead… and even that giant dude. They all lost."

"Mukahi. Kabaji." Reiko absently gave him their names, her training mindset taking over instinctively. "Scores and opponents?"

"Doubles 2, 6 games to 4 against that two squabbling Seigaku sophomores. Singles 3, 6 games to 3. Ah, Kabaji's scope of copied moves seemed less than usual. Against some guy that kept spouting percentages and proba-babies. Singles 2, 6 games to 3 against Fuji." Kevin rattled off, his mind having catalogued it under 'Very Bad Tennis Matches Never to Watch Again.'

The way Reiko was staring off into the space beyond his left ear was honestly starting to scare him. "Ray?"

She let out a breath. "It's abysmal."

"I know."

* * *

"_I'll come back… But don't expect to see me on the tournament courts, or even tournament grounds."_

If Atobe had been anyone less, he would have jumped up and punched the air, screaming "YES!" after reading Reiko's message. Instead, he settled for smirking a _lot_ and replying his cousin's message.

"_We'll negotiate the latter later, Rei. I'll see you in Japan then."_

As he got out of his (chauffeured) limo at the designated Atobe Corp building where the meeting was being held, Atobe had the uncharacteristic urge to whistle.

His eyes darkened suddenly.

It was almost as if his good mood was like a candle that was snuffed out. A car ahead of him, Sanada Genichirou got out. Noticing the Atobe heir looking in his direction, Sanada nodded in acknowledgement.

A living reminder of the dilemma he still had to face…

Atobe haughtily smirked, returning the nod with a slight tilt of his head, before striding into the building like he owned it. Who could blame him? He technically would in a scant few years' time.

No one would suspect that under that façade of rich haughty heir, Atobe was doing his best to force thoughts of the dilemma he was facing out of his mind. No one would suspect that he was hoping that decisions like these would wait for another day. No one would suspect that he was banking everything on fate, destiny and luck to tide him through the question of family and duty or love.

* * *

As she exited the plane on Japanese soil once more, Echizen Reiko wondered who could see beyond the arrogant smirk of the Princess of Tennis and see the inner turmoil. She would have to decide soon… Once her grandfather found out…

Would she leave the destruction to Keigo, who knew the unspoken rule as well as she did, and save herself the pain of destroying someone she… loved? Or would she save her cousin the pain – because he would have to destroy the one he liked as well?

Or would she go on her knees to plead clemency for Seiichi, regardless of everything that had happened simply because her heart would not see someone she loved destroyed? And would she plead clemency for them both, because she knew Kei's heart wouldn't, but he could and would overrule it for her?

Kevin reached for her hand in an action so reminiscent of Seiichi that she almost flinched as he squeezed in comfort. As though sensing something was wrong, he released her hand and settled for throwing an arm over her shoulder (an action more usual in their friendship) as they walked towards the limo that they knew awaited them outside the airport.

Neither noticed amethyst eyes narrow at the blonde's actions, and follow them till they were specks to the naked eye.

* * *

**A/N: **To those who guess correctly who saw them, you get a cookie! *munches on rum&spice cookies* Yea I'm high on alcoholic cookies. Anyway, for my usual post-chapter ramble…

This chapter has a lot of introspects and lesser conversation, I know. Largely, these scenes are to help (I hope) illustrate the situation Reiko and Keigo are in. In essence, I'm trying to show the dilemma they are faced with: family, duty, and whatnot versus like and/or love. Hence, the chapter title _Torn_. I hope I succeeded, and you enjoyed it despite the lack of dialogue.

On a random note, I joined CampNaNoWriMo and am a rebel. It's helping me write faster though, so I probably will have finished drafting all my chapters by mid-July as planned. All that's left after that is extensive revising before posting each week - meaning I should be able to complete this fic by mid-August as planned. It _has _been more than 2 years, and _the end is nigh_. If you wanna check up what's the progress, I normally put which chapter I'm writing and editing on my profile. Other rants go on my tumblr (rosenzakura) - it's listed as my homepage on my profile! So if you wanna check (and nag at me), these are just some ways to!

See you next week! -iirse


	22. XX: Life Goes On

**A/N:** I haven't turned out a chapter this short in a while, so please forgive me. It's too much of a filler chapter for my taste. It moves things along in a way, and addresses certain things I've mentioned, but doesn't have much in the way of real drama. Either way, I hope you will still find this chapter enjoyable enough. Leave a review or drop me a PM to let me know what you think! -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 20 – **_**Life Goes On**_

"… -kahi-senpai and Hiyoshi could use more work on stamina as you said, Reiko-san." Ohtori finished delivering his report.

Reiko continued to stare out at the courts with glassy eyes, however.

"Reiko-san?" Her fellow second year called, disturbed. It had been happening consistently since she had returned – Reiko would just space out and while she was listening, she wasn't really _listening_.

Frowning, Kevin tried a hand at rousing his best friend. "Ray. _Ray. __**Ray!**_"

The last call – nearly a shout – did the trick. Snapping back to herself, Reiko blinked. "Kev?"

"What's _with_ you?" The blonde's forehead made contact with his palm. He knew, of course. The whole team did in different degrees of detail. It was getting exasperating, however understandable it might be. "Ohtori-san was giving you an update of what's been going on and waiting for your instructions. You've been out of it the whole week!"

"It isn't just Reiko-san, Smith-san." Ohtori interrupted, the strangeness of the past days showing its toll on the typical polite teen. "If I may add, I've noticed that Atobe-buchou has been behaving rather oddly as well, and he and Nakamura-senpai aren't exactly speaking..."

Reiko sighed, staring at the courts again. She didn't really have the energy to deal with 'Keisaki' drama. Other things weighed on her mind, and she was about to give voice to them when a dark figure making its way towards the courts caught her attention. "Kev, who's that?"

Squinting, her best friend shrugged. "I have no clue. That guy looks like a bodyguard from those action movies though!"

"_Shimatta!_" Reiko swore, showing the first signs of haste anyone had seen since she returned from France as she headed for the stairs that joined bleachers to courts, snapping her phone out as she did. "Kei."

"I'm behind you, Rei." Atobe smoothly fell into step beside his cousin. "Its ojii-sama's personal guard, I believe."

A quick glance at the girl at his side showed that though she was pale at the prospect of facing their grandfather, she'd smoothed her features into the impeccable façade of the Takeuchi heiress, and had slid her phone discreetly back into her blazer. "I hadn't expected ojii-sama to catch on so quickly."

Atobe never got a chance to reply.

"Ojou-sama, Keigo-bocchama." The guard greeted deferentially, as they approached earshot. "Takeuchi-sama requests your presence."

Reiko inclined her head slightly. "I understand. We will follow." Bowing, the guard turned gestured for heir and heiress to take the lead.

Neither looked back.

Standing at the edge of the sprawling courts, Nakamura Misaki watched them go wordlessly before she utilized speed she didn't realize she possessed, sprinting up the stairs. A quick look passed between Oshitari and Ohtori before the blunette was running after his old friend.

Back on the courts, the remaining Hyotei regulars stared at one another, confusion rife in their ranks.

* * *

"Misaki!" Oshitari yelled, following the Nakamura heiress as she raced down the hallways, weaving through the empty corridors before she vanished into an alcove. Nearly growling in frustration, Hyotei's tensai rammed into the room after her.

In the time that it had taken him to catch up with her – who had known that the brunette could run so fast; she was hardly an athlete – Misaki had settled onto one of the loveseats that overlooked the courts. Strangely though, she stared at the far wall rather than out of the window. Sighing, Oshitari settled in beside her.

They sat in unbroken silence for many a long minute.

Then… "I think I'm right, Yuushi." Her soft voice shattered the pretense at harmony they had been attempting.

Harmony? What harmony? Harmony was the play that the whole Hyotei team had been trying to stage. And were failing pathetically. Oshitari knew this as he canted his head in unspoken question at Misaki's statement.

"When Reiko-chan returned, she told me everything that had happened." She related. It was true that the Hyotei regulars knew what had come to pass in various degrees of detail, depending on how close they were to Reiko. Hiyoshi and Shishido, to name a few, knew the least. "You should at least suspect this: Takeuchi-sama and Keigo both threatened Yukimura-san with destruction should he hurt Reiko."

Yuushi paled under his tan. It wasn't so much due to Misaki's revelation – the men in Reiko's family were overprotective and it was a fact she bemoaned regularly – but rather the connection he had drawn. "Then the man from earlier…"

"He was sent by Takeuchi-sama, yes." Misaki confirmed, looking disturbed. "But for Takeuchi-sama to send someone means that he wants to discuss what action should be taken. However, Keigo had promised Takeuchi-sama that he didn't need to be told how to protect his cousin during Atobe-sama's birthday party – he would do it anyway."

Tensai that he was, the blunette caught on quickly. "That means Atobe hasn't done anything yet, despite his promise."

"And it also means that something is holding him back. You know he prizes his own blood, Yuushi." Misaki continued on that vein of conversation. "He would 'avenge' Reiko, no questions asked. Yet he hasn't. And the only other person involved in this debacle…"

"Is Sanada." Yuushi finished. "Kami-sama, you do realize you're suggesting that Atobe's stalling because he can't decide whether to break his cousin's heart or his own?"

Misaki only inclined her head gently. "The thought pains me, but yes, I do know what I'm implying. I can't see any other conclusion."

"Neither can I." He returned after a beat of consideration. Then her first sentence hit him. Quietly, he studied the girl beside him. "Misaki…"

The heiress raised her eyes to meet his. A silent '_what?'_ passed between them.

"You haven't spoken to Atobe since Kantou semifinals." He finally voiced, deciding to give up on phrasing things delicately. "And now that you've said what you're thinking… I can't help but say this: are you jealous?"

To Yuushi's surprise, the Nakamura heiress burst into hysterical laughter. It had begun to scare him by the time it tapered off. "Oh Yuushi. What a question to ask!"

She took a breath to try and calm herself. It was so like Yuushi to ask such a ridiculous question at such a serious juncture, after all. "To be truthful… Yes, I'm jealous. I'm jealous that Keigo is wasting his time on someone so unworthy. I cannot see what he sees in Rikkaidai's Emperor because all I see is the guy who wrecked my best girl friend's relationship.

"If he were to ask me for my opinion, I would tell him to take his revenge on Sanada because he is the one who really caused all the hurt. And such a person… Well, he isn't worth Keigo."

Oshitari raised an eyebrow at the uncharacteristically frank mini speech that Misaki had made. She normally evaded his 'Keisaki' questioning. "So you're saying you're jealous of Sanada?"

"Yes." She admitted readily. "I'm jealous. But it's a jealousy as friends, Yuushi. As a friend, I'm jealous that he's wasting his time on someone not worth it. Beyond that… I feel nothing for him. Friendly jealousy, I call it."

He would have interrupted, but she held up a hand imperiously. "I know what you want to say, Yuushi, and I'm telling you to stop it. Keigo and I are friends. Nothing more. He doesn't feel that way about me, and while I may have been ambiguous on it previously… Well, after we fought… I thought about it, and I _know_ now that I'm uninterested in him romantically."

* * *

Seated with her legs folded under her, Reiko hardly dared to glance up at Atobe to gauge her cousin's reaction to their grandfather's wrath. Facing it, she honestly wondered how her mother had managed to stand up to it and marry Nanjiroh.

Takeuchi Ryuu's wrath was truly terrifying to behold. He was cold. And that made it scarier, because who knew when the dragon would fly out of the volcano?

"Why has nothing been done to either party, Keigo?" Their grandfather coolly demanded.

As much as she longed to interrupt, Reiko knew better than to breach protocol. She would speak when addressed, and no sooner. She could gamble her entire inheritance that her Monkey King of a cousin was panicking at the moment, even though she didn't dare look at him – she would have laughed if the situation wasn't that dire.

After all, both of them hadn't made any solid decisions. They had both foolishly hoped to stay in limbo for a while more. For much longer. For all eternity, if possible.

Obviously, that wasn't possible for any longer.

"Reiko." Ryuu's eyes turned to his quiescent granddaughter. "Care to explain?"

She finally looked up at her grandfather. It took all of Reiko's training to stop her eyes from straying to her mother, seated to the left and behind Takeuchi Ryuu, to plead for help. But apparently, she didn't need it, considering how her mouth just moved without consulting her mind. "Ojii-sama, please don't blame Kei. I stayed his hand."

"Go on." Flinty eyes bore into Reiko even as Keigo's head snapped around to stare at her in disbelief and protest – they should share the blame. Reiko shouldn't take the fall alone, considering that both of them hesitated. Ryuu raised a hand to still any interruptions from his grandson.

_Shit, shit, shit. Rei, what are you thinking?_ Atobe's panicked thoughts ran haywire as he desperately searched his cousin's features for some indication of what she was up to.

Yet her cool amber eyes gave away nothing. "If I may, ojii-sama, I believe that your idea of destruction is inferior."

Behind her father, Rinko made to rise and stop her daughter before Reiko could go any further and unleash the dragon, as she and Ryoko had affectionately named their father's temper as children. She didn't want to see Reiko suffer a tongue lashing, and she would very much like her home office to remain intact, for that was where the unofficial meeting was being held. However, the daring statement only earned the Princess the famed Takeuchi raised eyebrow and a questioning, "Oh?"

"Forgive my insolence, ojii-sama," Reiko continued, her tone betraying nothing of what she felt, frustrating Rinko and Atobe to no end. However, to Takeuchi Ryuu, it was a mark of her training. Training that she displayed well as she easily divined, outlined and shot down what he wanted to be done. "You mean to destroy family wealth. It will be a hard blow to take, yes, but there are people who survive without wealth."

In her mind, Reiko projected the image of her first boyfriend over Seiichi's face in order to force the satisfied smile she had back them curl on her lips. "I would prefer to destroy their spirit rather than their property."

"Cunning, hime, but how do you plan to do that?" Atobe's jaw would have dropped if not for the strict control he had over himself. Against the odds, his baby cousin had managed to intrigue their grandfather enough to save their collective ass?

"We," She gestured to Keigo beside her to include him, "have been in contact with them for years. Kei more so than me, of course. If there's one thing we know well, it is that their pride lies in their game. For their game, they would go to any length."

Keigo finally caught on then. "Rei's point, ojii-sama, is that destroying their game would be far more painful than any destruction we can create in the form of wealth. My final year of middle school is more than enough proof of how important tennis is to them."

"My proposal is this, ojii-sama." Reiko drew their grandfather's attention back to her, deliberately forcing unwanted memories of that absolutely thrilling Nationals Finals match back in middle school out of her mind. "As Hyotei, we would sacrifice our reputation and win _all_ rounds and matches just by the skin of our teeth. We will scrape through like a dark horse, and we will face them in the Finals. And there we unleash every ounce of talent that we have and destroy them utterly."

* * *

Back on the well-kept Hyotei tennis courts, the remaining Regulars stared at one another. Atobe, Reiko and Oshitari were _all_ missing. Buchou, training manager, and fukubuchou. The tension was so thick that a plastic knife like those provided in crummy 'commoner' fast food places could cut it.

Surprisingly, it wasn't Mukahi or Shishido who broke the silence.

"Ano, minna-san." No, it was Ohtori's voice which cut through the daze that they were all in. "We should continue with training as per normal."

"There isn't much 'normal' to things when we're short of Atobe, Oshitari and Echizen, Choutarou." Shishido couldn't help but point out. He and his doubles partner were close, certainly, but couldn't Choutarou see that training wouldn't proceed? There was no way training could continue without the figures of authority that kept the team in line and on task. Especially considering Gakuto and Hiyoshi…

And speak of the devil, the redhead preempted anything Ohtori could have said in reply. "Yea, Ohtori. I'm just going to go home now. Yuushi isn't here to practice with me anyway."

"Gekyukujo…" Hiyoshi muttered, making to walk off.

Behind Ohtori, Kevin threw Jiroh a worried look – the other blonde was the only other person he really knew on the team since Reiko had gravitated towards Jiroh upon her return. Jiroh only smiled blithely, tilting his face up to enjoy the sun's rays. The rest may not have noticed, but Chou-chan had a growing tick on his temple. And explosion was coming in three… two… one…

"Stop right there." It was no polite request that anyone would expect out of Ohtori, but a statement of pure command. Both Hiyoshi and Mukahi felt their bodies halt before their minds comprehended it.

"Hm, it would seem that Chou-chan's 'Hyotei insanity' is showing itself." Jiroh smiled at Kevin. Shishido, being close enough to hear, paled slightly. He was ever so thankful he hadn't walked off yet. He's faced Choutarou's Hyotei insanity before, and while it was curbed quickly, it was still an unpleasant experience he didn't want to repeat.

"Shishido-san might be right that there is a significant lack of authority, Mukahi-san, Wakashi," The tall second year's voice carried easily. "But when Atobe-buchou and Reiko-san were in France, Oshitari-senpai was interim buchou, and I was interim fukubuchou. While it doesn't hold much water, chain of command dictates I take over from Oshitari-senpai."

Mukahi had subsided, probably suspecting that Oshitari would support Ohtori, but Hiyoshi still looked mutinous.

Kevin chose then to intervene and throw his weight behind Ohtori, sensing things would only escalate if left alone. "Minna-san, I know it's hardly my place to offer an opinion, but I doubt that Ray and Atobe need more to worry about. We know they have problems even if we don't know what they are. They don't need to worry about messed up trainings on top of that."

"Nicely put, Kevin." Jiroh interjected, grinning appreciatively at the new kid. He picked up fast, Jiroh had been about to cut in himself, but this way worked just as well. "Saa… Why don't we just listen to Chou-chan, hm? Kei-chan won't have put him in charge if he thought he was incapable."

The combined efforts of three people were enough, it seemed – especially since Kevin and Jiroh both fell under the category of 'confidante' with Atobe and Reiko. Kabaji slowly nodded, uttering. "Usu."

"Che." Mukahi sulked, stalking to stand beside Shishido. "You better have improved since middle school first year, Ryou."

A nod from Ohtori proved that he would be training with Mukahi that day, and Shishido groaned. "I miss normal training, damn it! This is so lame!"

As the team settled into as normal a training session as they would get that day, unmarked by anyone, Sakaki watched.

_Ohtori Choutarou, was it? And they said you always had to watch for the quiet ones. For next year, Ohtori, with Echizen and Smith might just form the next Golden Three of the high school circuit. Even without Smith and Echizen… Ohtori was worth considering as a successor to Atobe…_

* * *

Just as Hyotei had watched their captain, vice-captain and training manager disappear earlier, in Rikkaidai, the Regulars froze in their training to watch as Yukimura stowed away his racquet; the harsh sound of the violent zipping of his bag was the only sound that broke the silence, damning all of them even as their captain stalked off the courts and out of training grounds.

It was as if with the disappearance of Yukimura, they were rendered mobile again.

Still, it took a while for them to remember how to use their limbs – it felt like the first time Yanagi threw power weights at them; they all felt like they were moving through some viscous solution. Sanada was the first to regain control. "Tarundoru! Did anyone say to stop?"

Thankfully for the rest of the Regulars, Yanagi was quick to intervene (and prevent bitch slaps). "Genichirou, it's alright. The probability we will get any productive training in today now is 0.00017329 anyway." The last of the Troika turned to the other Regulars. "Regulars, dismissed."

Curtly, Sanada nodded, before stalking off in the same direction that Yukimura had headed earlier.

It was almost as though they'd become as light as air in a split second, as the remaining Regulars veered towards the clubroom as one, presumably to wash up and change. "Phew, thanks for the save, puri!" Niou muttered to Yanagi as they continued on their way.

Strangely enough, they found themselves leaning against their lockers and talking instead of fighting for the showers once they entered the locker room.

"… It's not like I'm complaining or anything, really. I'm thankful I don't have to play a match against either Reiko-chan or 'Mura, but kami-sama, I miss normal training! I would play against them rather than have this _hell_!" The redhead referred to the dare that the couple had made him at the after party before this drama had unfolded – the drama that none of them had been able to decipher.

Anyone who knew anything was obviously keeping mum.

Niou was about to make a mocking comment (as was expected from a member of the Trouble Trio) when his phone started ringing. Snapping it open, he greeted. "Puri."

The room was so silent that one could almost hear a pin drop.

Then Niou replied. "Besides Rikkai having a fair next, and therefore we're being driven sane… Well, no, I'm not picking up anything, Fuji. Yukimura just stalked off after Marui and I were daring one another to spike the punch of a rival class at the fair."

"_Reiko and Atobe's grandfather came over for a Takeuchi-only family conference in Rinko-baa-san's home office earlier, Niou. It's never happened before."_ Fuji's voice was snappish. In the too-silent room, Yagyuu heard every word clearly as he rested his chin on his partner's shoulder.

Niou shrugged, discomfort obvious seeing how he hardly noticed he'd dislodged Yagyuu's head from its previously comfortable position. The Gentleman frowned as Niou 'patiently' replied. "And I'm telling you I don't know anything about what's going on in Hyotei, no matter how much you ask!" Fuji's voice dropped then, but whatever he said was enough for Niou to look even more uneasy. "Alright, I understand. Ja."

He snapped his phone shut and looked up, only to see all eyes on him. "What?"

"99.9692873% that Echizen's family conference had to do with her falling out with Seiichi. 98.2431% that Takeuchi-sama viewed it as Echizen was hurt. 99.991257% says he intends to damage the Yukimuras in retaliation." Yanagi rattled off.

"Why would they need a conference for that though?" Akaya piped up. "'Nee-chan would protest – we've seen the way she looks at 'Mura-buchou. So why would they give her a chance to protest, why not just go ahead?"

Yanagi sighed. Akaya made sense, in a way but… Thankfully, Jackal intervened. "That's because it's not very nice to go behind someone's back, Akaya."

"Then why is fukubuchou always staring at 'Mura-buchou's back, Jackal-senpai?" Akaya asked curiously. "He looks like he got caught with his hand in the cookie jar! And then he looks angry!"

"He's concerned for a good friend, Kirihara-kun." Yagyuu replied, ever-patient, even as Niou and Marui rolled their eyes.

The Devil remained unconvinced. "But… But the way fukubuchou always glares at 'nee-chan! It makes sense! Fukubuchou did s_omething_. But Monkey Atobe didn't retaliate because of the way Atobe and fukubuchou always have this _tension_ going on!"

Yanagi nodded placating. "Alright, Akaya." The data master ruffled the second year's hair. "But you're getting ahead of yourself based on a few occurrences you've seen that no one else has. The probability of what you suggest being true… is minimal."

"Come on, Hiroshi!" Niou called, dismissing Akaya's speculation from his mind. The sweat was starting to get to him, and he really wanted his favorite stall.

Marui narrowed his eyes. "No way you're getting _my_ stall, Niou!"

* * *

Stopping at one of the many gardens scattered around the sprawling campus of Rikkaidai, Yukimura Seiichi tried to calm himself. It wasn't so much the brisk walk that he had taken since leaving the courts that had left him in such a state – no tennis player worth their salt would be exhausted by so little, and he was the best… Well, one of the best, seeing how he and Reiko beat each other almost alternately…

_Reiko…_

No, it wasn't the walk that left him in such a state, but rather Niou (and Marui)'s mention of alcohol.

The little things like those… They simply reminded him of Reiko. One moment, he'd been waiting for her to come back with water at the after party, and the next, he was awake with a terrible headache in one of Atobe's rooms reading a letter in her handwriting telling him that they were over.

And the best part was that he remembered nothing between those two moments.

Absolutely _**nothing**_.

Nothing made sense. Not the sudden impersonal breakup without reason given. Not her ignoring of any form of communication. Not her presence at the airport with some blonde. Not Atobe's refusal to let him see her…

Yukimura cursed alcohol in that moment. It was the damned alcohol. He knew how it affected it, and made him pass out easily – and he had been near his limit at the end of the party. If he had stayed awake, perhaps he'd know what happened that had Reiko so upset and with some blonde right now. Who on earth _was_ that blonde anyway?

"Seiichi?"

Automatically, he spun around on the defensive, relaxing when he noted that it was only Sanada. "Genichirou."

"Renji's dismissed the team for today." His second-in-command informed him. "They were headed for the clubroom when I left."

Absently, Yukimura nodded his understanding.

In that moment, Sanada honestly felt like screaming in frustration. Like with Reiko as Takeuchi heiress and Atobe as well, Atobe heir, it was only his vaunted control from years of breeding and training that held him back. Albeit that control that had slipped that night when he was drunk, but it only slipped that _once._ It wasn't like anyone knew. And it wasn't like _Seiichi_ remembered.

Sanada wasn't too sure if he wanted Seiichi to remember or not, really.

It would be nice to stop hiding, but at the same time… Coming clean meant facing reality. Reality only had a few outcomes: Rejection – which could either lead to loss of friendship or maintaining their current relationship no matter how awkward… Or the slim chance of acceptance.

Considering the way Seiichi was being hung up over Echizen, the last was a very, very slim chance. Renji would know the exact odds, but Sanada wasn't about to ask.

But Seiichi… Was he_ blind_? So Echizen had ran away, had just vanished on him. So what? That just proved that for all her strength in tennis, Echizen Reiko was weak enough to just break up with someone and disappear. A proper person, in Sanada's opinion, should have at least done the break up in person and still have the courage to face their ex.

Echizen Reiko was weak.

And… Seiichi deserved better; why couldn't he see that? Why couldn't he see what was in front of him for years?

"…ichirou?" He was snapped out of his thoughts by Yukimura calling him. Quickly, he gave his captain a questioning expression. "Did you come for a reason?"

The Emperor inclined his head. "I was just letting you know practice has technically ended, so you could go back and retrieve your things."

Yukimura turned away, looking absently over the well-kept gardens. "I'll lock up later, after the team has left then." He decided, turning back to inform his vice-captain of his choice – it was only polite to look at the person you were speaking to, after all. "You can go on ahead. I need time alone, and there's no point inflicting everyone with my bad mood."

For a moment, Seiichi thought he saw _something_ flicker in Sanada's eyes before it was gone and the fukubuchou nodded his acquiescence and started off. Dismissing it as a trick of the light, he turned back to the flora and fauna surrounding him, taking comfort in them as he tried for the umpteenth time to find an answer as to what exactly had come to pass that a relationship that he had thought was going perfectly fine had ended so quickly… So messily.

_Reiko, where did we go wrong?_

* * *

**A/N:** And so, life goes on in all three schools. Well, we largely deal with the Hyotei-Rikkaidai aspect here because it's where the main drama is taking place. I love the irony of Sanada's thoughts – but well, that just how humans are, right? We can criticize others, not realizing we carry the same flaws. Whatever the case, I hope you enjoyed it.

In case you missed the memo, I've technically completed _As Fate._ It's all written out now, so what I'm doing now is editing and revising till I'm happy and posting it every Saturday/Sunday, depending on the demon known as Real Life. It'll probably be totally completed (read: updated on FFnet in its entirety) by mid-August.

See you next week (: -iirse


	23. XXI: Fair Day, M'lady

**A/N:** While I know I've always wanted this chain of events to happen, the setting credits definitely go to Aya-Mikage2002 who suggested doing a school fair way back when I was only writing Chapter 16 (: It was a brilliant suggestion that gave me the perfect excuse to have interschool interaction that moved the plot along. I tried throwing in more 'crack' to balance out the theatrics going on. Hope I've managed to pull it off! -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 21 – **_**Fair Day, M'lady**_

_Bang. Bang. Bang. Baa – g._

"Goddamn it, Marui! That was my thumb!" Niou shrieked; dropping his hammer and flailing about as Marui sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

The redhead sniffed. "How would I know you were so engrossed by a few pieces of wood and a hammer? I came to give you your ringing phone and this is the thanks I get?"

Niou smirked. Marui had totally just walked into that one. "Well, Hiro-chan would…"

"Masaharu." Yagyuu only had to say his partner (and boyfriend)'s name to shut him up, taking Niou's phone from Marui. In a split second, he was answering it in Niou's voice. "Puri."

The Gentleman paled within seconds though, and dropped the partial Switch in his next answer. "Very well. 'Haru?"

"Damn it!" Niou swore, obviously figuring out who it was. He snatched his phone from Yagyuu, ranting into it once it was near his ear. "For the last time, I know nothing! I've heard nothing. Now can I _please_ hang up so I can get ice for my swollen thumb that I got courtesy of your call?"

Marui looked curiously at his on-and-off partner-in-crime, best friend and doubles partner. It smelt like a _scandal_. And Marui Bunta loved scandals, especially when they affected Niou this much. Who cares if they were supposed to be setting up their stall for the fair that started tomorrow? In a heartbeat, he decided and jumped (yes, that's how short he was), snitching Niou's phone. "Who's this? What's the scandal on Niou now?"

"Damn it, Marui!" The Trickster swore for the third time. Wow, didn't he know that third time pays all?

To Marui's surprise, it wasn't a girl or someone he didn't know on the other line. No, the voice that he heard was familiar, which was the startling part. "Marui-san, this is Fuji."

"Oh. Hi." Marui managed to say, at a loss for words. Why on _earth_ were Niou and Fuji in contact? Didn't the silverette know that Yukimura would have his head? Oh right, Yukimura. Reiko. Fuji. He decided to confirm anyway. "So, what are you calling him for?"

"I was under the impression that would be a question your 'esteemed' captain or Yagyuu-san would be asking me, Marui-san." Fuji smoothly evaded.

The redhead growled, annoyed. Yes, he and Niou fought, but it didn't mean he didn't care about his… friend! He wanted to spit out the mushy aftertaste that came with the thought.

Thankfully for him, Fuji decided to answer. What spurred the tensai, Marui didn't know, but he was slightly thankful he didn't have to say those cheesy things out loud. Niou would never have let him live it down. "I asked Niou to keep his ears open for anything that might be related to Reiko's odd behavior lately, Marui-san."

"Asked?" Rikkaidai's self-proclaimed tensai skeptically asked. Niou didn't deal well with 'asks.' He was an ass like that.

It seemed like his intuition was right. "I do have something over his head, yes. Hyotei performed strangely at semifinals, not to mention Rikkaidai at Finals."

"We all know it has to do with 'Mura and Echizen." The redhead connected the dots. "The only unknown that remains is what exactly happened."

"Precisely." Fuji agreed. "Niou has been unable to give me anything beyond Yukimura's harsh behavior and the alcohol reference. All I can conclude is that it has to do with the after party at Atobe's – which only Rikkai and Hyotei attended."

Marui went silent, canting his head to the side in thought. "You haven't tried Oshitari?"

"Oshitari would alert Reiko in a heartbeat." The brunette replied without hesitation. "Within the minutes of me finding out Reiko had taken off to France, he sent me a message saying not to press him because he considered her more important than any humiliating blackmail I had."

"Hyotei prizes appearances. It must be pretty harsh." Marui commented, still thinking. "They've been acting weird lately… Speaking of weird and Hyotei, I may have something for you now that I think of it."

He could almost see Fuji's eyebrow raising. The Platinum Pair certainly were skeptical of his 'information.' Marui wasn't known for his ability to pick up gossip surreptitiously, after all – look at the way he tried to find out Niou's 'scandal.' "You do know how we're having a fair tomorrow, right? Well, when I extended the invitation to Jiroh, he was rather cold."

"The whole of Hyotei's been cold to Rikkaidai since Echizen disappeared." Niou yelled, face faulting. He honestly thought that just _maybe_ Marui had been on to something for once.

"No, I'm serious!" Marui protested. "Jiroh has that fan boy complex, you know? And you remember the pocky incident? Well, actually we met up after that a few times to chill. So it was weird. There was some serious dislike – with reason, not just unfounded like the distrustful eyes we saw when we passed them at semifinals!"

Yagyuu and Niou sighed as one, but Fuji was intrigued. You never knew where information might be useful. "Explain, please, Marui-san."

Marui jolted, reminded that he was still on Niou's phone. "At Kantou semifinals, we walked past Hyotei on the way to our court. They were gave us funny looks, I'd term them distrustful. Not quite friendly, but not completely hostile either. That was Hyotei in general, of course. Jiroh wasn't there. But when I extended the invitation to him over webcam, you could see the hostility in his face, you know? The kind of expression that says 'I can't believe you're doing this after you did…' something bad, essentially."

"You're suggesting that Jiroh knows what's going on." Fuji summed up.

The redhead rubbed the back of his head. "I guess… Yea, I guess I am. Easier to ask him than Atobe or Oshitari – or worse yet, 'Mura, right? Hey!"

Niou had finally regained use of his limbs. "Information, my ass, Marui. It's just speculation!" He held the phone to his ear only to hear the dial tone. "Damn it, Marui! You do realize that if it's wrong information, it's _my_ ass that Fuji's coming after?"

Rikkai's tensai grinned sheepishly.

"You're so dead, Marui Bunta!" Niou yelled, starting to chase his friend, hammer in hand, swollen thumb long forgotten. Sighing at two thirds of the Trouble Trio, Yagyuu picked up his hammer and continued work. It looked that he would be doing Masaharu's work again…

* * *

Fuji Syuusuke on a mission was a rather terrifying sight. While the Hyotei girls giggled over how cute he was, the males swerved to avoid him, sensing the aura of pure _kill_ he was giving off.

One of the freshmen actually walked into the gate in his fright and had to be carried to the infirmary.

Did Fuji care? The answer was a short, simple No. Capitalized, too.

His mind was far, _far_ away.

A number of months away, as a matter of fact, as he recollected the day that Reiko had coldly brushed him off for Atobe and told him to play messenger boy. The day she had told him she was transferring to Hyotei. Sprawling Hyotei – the rich kids' school. What other school could afford such a large compound despite the ridiculously high price of land in Tokyo.

Fuji couldn't be bothered to search the entire school on his own, so he had decided for waiting at the gate for his quarry. Marui's information had been largely speculation as Niou had said, but as of the current moment, Seigaku's tensai was desperate enough to use any lead he could find. If it meant coming into 'enemy territory' and hearing Tezuka bitch about it later, so be it.

He always had an amicable friendship with Tezuka, but that had gone up in smoke when Seigaku's captain blew things out of proportion and essentially accused Reiko not considering the team.

Oh fine, Fuji admitted to himself, he had supported the action at first, using it as a cover up to try and keep her in Seigaku. It was a move that utterly backfired. But especially at semifinals…

Well, Fuji might have been pissed with the fact that Reiko was dating Yukimura, but that didn't render him blind. He saw exactly what had passed between Reiko and Tezuka. He'd seen his imouto's damning gaze as she cut her eyes to Inui and Yanagi.

Tezuka was a moron. Period.

Atobe was one too, considering that all this issues happened on his watch. Nonetheless, Fuji resolved to get to the bottom of things. In that moment, he spotted his target. "Akutagawa-san!"

The blonde narcoleptic spun around at the sudden call of his family name – most people called him by his first name anyway. His eyes widened in surprise. "Fuji! What are you doing in Hyotei?"

"Can I talk to you?" It was phrased as a question, but the steely look in the tensai's eyes convinced Jiroh that Fuji _would _get what he wanted, regardless of Jiroh's choice.

It only took them a few minutes to find a private corner nearby. Those study alcoves scattered around Hyotei were really convenient for private talks, apparently. Absently, Fuji wondered how many times Oshitari had misused them with Mukahi. Knowing Niou, if such places existed in Rikkaidai, he'd have done the same, only with someone else. The thought of Rikkaidai, however, drew him back to his purpose. "What's going on, Akutagawa-san?"

"I was on my way home?" Jiroh flippantly returned.

When all he got was Fuji's stare, Jiroh sighed. "Fuji, I know what you're here for, alright? Everyone's been pressuring me since Reiko went to France. They were only placated when she came back and told them. If she wants you to know, she'll tell you. Otherwise, I'll just reiterate what I've been saying the whole time she was gone: it's not my place to say."

"So you're telling me the whole of Hyotei's team knows." Fuji clarified.

The blonde looked uneasily at him. "Well, how much _detail_ each of us knows is different. Misaki, Atobe and I probably know the most. Oshitari and Ohtori to some degree. The rest just know the basic. How much Oshitari and Ohtori chose to tell their doubles partners, I wouldn't be able to say. I don't know."

"Your whole _team_ knows and her _family_ doesn't?" The raging tempest of the tensai's fury was contained only by a fine sliver of control.

Jiroh couldn't really decide what to say to that. "Ryoga-san probably does. And since you were home when Takeuchi-sama called for their family conference, I'm guessing that Rinko-san does as well."

"'Nee-san knows nothing, neither does Nanji-san." Fuji shot back.

"We prize our own blood, Fuji-san." Jiroh replied, allowing the 'blood' (as he put it) to show. Often, he was seen as nice, friendly… Nothing like the rich kids of the school who had arrogance and power to back it in spades. Too bad they always learnt too late.

It seemed that the brunette wouldn't let it go, however. "And in doing so, you take no action?"

"Destruction." He tasted the word delicately. "Destruction was the reason for the Takeuchis' calling a family conference. We _never_ do nothing." Jiroh paused, considering how exactly he wanted to phrase it. "It doesn't matter who the culprit is to us, we _will_ destroy them even if it hurts us to do so. That's duty. And that's family."

He referred, of course, to Atobe's dilemma. But Fuji didn't need to know that. Fuji could go on to think that Jiroh spoke from personal experience, for all the narcoleptic cared.

"So you will not tell me." Fuji stated more than asked.

Jiroh smiled slightly at that, tilting his head as he did so. "I know why you're here. Marui said something about me being mean, right? I suspected it might come to that…"

He stood, ignoring Fuji's stare. "Saa… Isn't the fair today? Perhaps you should go and enjoy yourself, Fuji-san. But remember, what I've told you and shown you," He tapped a magazine on the table between them that Fuji hadn't noticed till then. "Well… Whatever I've said and shown doesn't leave this room in _any_ form, okay?"

Blithely, Akutagawa Jiroh strolled out of the room.

Then he found the nearest bin and retched into it. Kami-sama, that act was so _difficult_. He hated betraying Reiko like that, but it was the lesser of two evils. Either show Fuji, or let Fuji continue digging and possibly taking actions no one in Hyotei could control and protect Reiko from.

Who knew what the backlash would be then?

The blonde wiped his mouth on the back of his sleeve and continued on his journey out of school, watching Fuji's actions remotely through the connection between the camera he'd left in the room and his phone.

* * *

Back in the room, semi-aware that he was being watched, Fuji picked up the magazine Jiroh had tapped earlier. It automatically opened to a page where a brown paper envelope had been neatly slotted in. Fuji frowned. Was this what Jiroh had meant by showing him?

Opening it revealed a single damning glossy photograph.

His photography mind analyzed that the lighting was poor, the exposure too low… The photographer's hand was also slightly shaky, he noted and the subjects were…

Well, that was where he lost his train of thought because he _recognized_ the subjects despite the poor photography.

Yukimura Seiichi. Sanada Genichirou.

In an instant, it was quite clear why Reiko had run. She'd run after seeing this. Whether she had witnessed it in person or had realized it when Jiroh had shown her the same picture out of concern for a friend… Well, it didn't matter.

Fuji dropped the photo and envelope, leaving them to flutter to the ground in his wake in much the same way Reiko had in the nursery wing so much earlier on.

He was on a mission. This time to Rikkaidai. It seemed to be a day for visiting rival schools, hm?

* * *

"Is that all the dare you can think of, Niou?" Yukimura asked, laughing for once. "Alright then, give me that bag. And hold my cellphone for me, will you?"

Smirking cheekily, Niou handed over the bright pink bag he had stolen from his little sister for exactly that purpose in exchange for Yukimura's cellphone. "The whole day, 'Mura!" He called at his captain's retreating back, as the other entered the toilet.

When he turned back to his teammates, they were all staring at him in amazement. Then Marui reached up to swat his head. "Are you mad?"

"Or sick, Masaharu?" Yagyuu added, raising a hand to press against his partner's forehead in the classic way to check the other's temperature. He, at least, was truly worried.

The Trickster frowned. "What's wrong with you guys? We're finally on the way back to normal. It's Fair Day, guys! We're supposed to be enjoying ourselves!"

"Enjoyment doesn't equate to courting death, Niou." Yanagi inserted his two cents worth. "However, it will be an interesting chance to collect data…."

Rikkaidai's regulars, as a whole, slapped hand to forehead. Yanagi never changed.

The mastermind named Niou sighed. "Yanagi, relax. It's Fair Day, everything's great. 'Mura's more normal than ever. We're going to have a good time. Nothing's going to go wrong."

Famous last words they were too.

No sooner had Yukimura stepped out of the toilet in entire cross-dress regalia that Niou had prepared and the catcalls begun did everything start to unravel. They had been laughing and enjoying themselves, as Niou had predicted, heading back to the tennis booth where Akaya, Sanada and Jackal were holding the fort when Niou spotted a too-familiar head of honey hair.

Apparently, Marui had been on to something.

He slipped off to a side, flipping open Yukimura's phone as he did. _Last dialed numbers…_ Echizen Reiko blared out at him within a few clicks. Without hesitation, he pressed 'call' and put the phone to his ear.

* * *

Reiko was in Yumiko's convertible with Kevin leaving Kanagawa where they had been helping Yumiko out with a photo shoot when Reiko's phone rang.

_Through the changing seasons…._

Looking apologetically at her best friend and sister-in-law, she took it out of her pocket only to stare at it.

_Call: Yukimura Seiichi_

"Ray?" Kevin questioned, as she made no move to answer it. She turned the screen to him wordlessly. "Damn it! Just reject it, then!"

When Reiko took no action, he shook her shoulder lightly. "Reiko?"

"He texted me last night." She admitted after a few seconds' pause. "It was a long one, and… I caved and read it. It said he didn't know where it went wrong but if it was what I wanted, he'd stop trying to contact me."

Kevin scoffed. "Fine promise keeper, that one."

"No, really." She suddenly felt reckless and snapped her phone open. "Talk."

Niou was about to scream when Reiko finally answered the call. "Reiko, Niou here."

"'_Haru?"_ Her voice spluttered. _"Couldn't you use your own _damned_ phone so I would pick up?"_

"No time to explain." The Trickster brushed off her swearing as though it was lint on his clothes – basically, he didn't bother, seeing how Niou never cared for tidiness. "Get to Rikkai now."

He could _see_ her immediate frown, really. _"What for?"_

Desperate times called for desperate measures. "Fuji's been trying to figure out what's with you. He's here now. And…" Niou took a quick look. "From the looks of things, screaming at 'Mura. I don't care if you care about 'Mura or not, but get your brother under control."

Reiko was silent for a moment before he heard her address someone else. _"'Nee-san, Syuu-nii's wreaking havoc at Rikkai."_ Judging from the accelerator he heard, she was coming. _"On my way, 'Haru. Ja."_

* * *

Fuji was too busy yelling at Yukimura to notice Niou slipping back in. Yagyuu, however, did. "Where did you go?"

"Called Reiko." His boyfriend succinctly replied. "Only way I could think of. Miracle she picked up since I was using 'Mura's phone. Update?"

"Fuji started yelling at Yukimura. Something about him using Echizen to break Hyotei, did he think that she was just a tool?" Yagyuu briefly surmised. "Oh, Yukimura's retaliating now."

Niou would have laughed if the situation wasn't so tense. Where _was_ Reiko anyway? Tokyo to Kanagawa took a while. Would she be in time or not?

"I would rather think that Hyotei was using Echizen as a tool to break Rikkai. Unfortunately for _them_, we aren't so easily broken, Fuji Syuusuke. Sound out your sister's friends before you come and rail at me." Yukimura shot back. Rikkaidai's captain never showed much of a temper. It just came out as brutal tennis matches. But right now... Well, Niou was scared. And Akaya looked like he was about to piss in his pants…

Yukimura was barely holding his temper back by a thread.

"Did you think I wouldn't?" Fuji spat back. "There is _proof_ to it you two-timing, using, cheating son of a –"

"Fuji Syuusuke!"

Niou had never been so happy to see Reiko before. Not even when she turned up and he could tease 'Mura about them in a time that felt ages past.

The Princess didn't spare him anyone a glance as she sprinted up to her brother with ease even in 5-inch black sling backs. "That's enough, Syuu-nii."

"It's not enough." Fuji retorted. "Considering what they _did_ to you…"

She glared at him, and in that moment, Akaya whimpered. Fuji, Reiko and Yukimura with tempers running high… It was terrifying for the second year who was only a Devil on the courts. "I was fool enough to fall for it. Kei and I have our _own_ plans for that. Spirits are so much fun to break, after all."

Reiko smirked at that, but Marui who was really looking at her saw the falseness of that smirk. Fuji was too focused on his distress. "After all their deceit?" He demanded.

"Enough." She set down her foot, looking every inch the rich Hyotei girl: mustard tank tucked into red leather shorts, belted with a slender black belt and her hair pulled in a messy-elaborate twist that was half up and half down.

Truth be told, in the siblings' whole conversation, Yukimura hardly understood a thing. He didn't quite understand _what_ Fuji was accusing him of, considering he never did try to break Reiko in his memory. Or deceive her, for that matter. He was more focused on the fact she was in Rikkai colors.

And the blonde behind her.

The same blonde who slipped an arm around her shoulders right now. "Ray, chill."

She turned that piercing stare on him, but he was remained unfazed even as she told him off. "No, Kev. Enough is enough. I know what they did better than he does. I _don't_ need a goddamned reminder." At that sentence, Kevin actually raised his head from where he was resting against Reiko's to glare at Seigaku's tensai, who recoiled. "When I say I have my own damn plans, I mean it."

She pulled away staring straight at both Yukimura and Sanada. "I'm not horrible enough to do physical destruction. Your _families_ don't deserve it, no matter how much _you_ do."

She spun on her heel, Fuji in tow. "We're going, Syuu-nii." Kevin only gave Yukimura a scornful look before following his best friend's lead.

Akaya blinked as he watched them go… Wasn't 'nee-chan wearing Rikkai colors? That was… Weird. He glanced around to see if anyone had noticed besides him. Hm… Why did fukubuchou look like he just escaped getting caught with his hand in the cookie jar…?

* * *

"No, I'm not using _Atobe's_ limo!" Fuji firmly stated, refusing for the _n_th time.

Reiko and Kevin exchanged a look behind his back, before the heiress snapped. "I've had _enough_ of your nonsense. Has it occurred to you that Kei's not the _only_ person in the world with a limo? Legally, my name is Echizen -_Takeuchi_ Reiko. It's _my_ damned limo." She yanked the door open.

Kevin slid in without hesitation, Fuji more reluctantly so.

The chauffeur appeared nonchalant to the wait, only addressing Reiko. "Takeuchi-sama, where to?"

Taking a breath to calm herself, Reiko leveled a small smile in the direction of the chauffeur. Takeuchi Ryuu had long assigned one exclusively to his granddaughter because he knew she despised dealing with strangers. "Just drive towards Tokyo and circle near my parents' place. I'll let you know when we're done. Oh, and put up the privacy screen."

"Hai, Takeuchi-sama." The chauffeur nodded.

Once the screen was up, her calm mien was gone with the previously slightly public setting. "What the heck were you thinking going to Rikkaidai to yell at people like that? Wait, I don't have to ask because you weren't thinking to begin with!"

Behind his hand, Kevin stifled a laugh. Reiko when she totally laid into someone was hilarious, and her scathing comments were well learnt. As long as you weren't on the receiving end of her temper… Well, the show was amazingly good to watch.

"So you were just going to let the fact that he _cheated_ on you slide?" Fuji demanded, equally incensed.

Reiko rolled her eyes. With the earlier conversation, she'd figured out he knew already. She wasn't going to bother finding out how he knew just yet – blackmail probably – but really, this was getting too much. "Were you deaf? I wasn't aware that Yukimura's tennis could deafen a person even when neither player is on the court. I wasn't bluffing when I said I had my own plans earlier."

Fuji remained silent. It was like a question mark.

"Ojii-sama would never let an insult like that to his heir slide." Reiko elaborated. "Kei _cannot_ let it slide without ojii-sama having his head. I have the power of both Atobe and Takeuchi at my fingertips. And they would have gone ahead to ruin both of them in a heartbeat if I didn't stay their hand."

Kevin raised an eyebrow at Reiko, who shook her head minutely – she wasn't going to tell her cousin's secret to her brother-in-law. She didn't trust him enough to do that.

"You think of me as a child, Fuji Syuusuke. Yet in reality, I've been facing businessmen more vicious than you for a number of years already. You have no obligation to try and 'protect' me now that I'm gone from Seigaku – I can't jeopardize your team anymore. So leave me to live my life as I would!" She finished.

Judging from the stunned look on Fuji's face, Kevin suspected he never saw Reiko's tirade coming. It wasn't too surprising. Reiko wasn't too fond of speaking in copious amounts unless she was upset or she just wanted to get something out of the way.

Fuji's sputtering was _very_ amusing though.

"Rei-chan, I never did _anything_ like Tezuka!" The only brunette in the limo protested. Reiko only arched an eyebrow at him, skeptical. "I thought you _knew_; I was just trying to protect you from any potential hurt!"

"Even if she were to take that as true, Fuji-san," Kevin interjected. "Well, cosseting someone isn't exactly the way to go to protecting them."

Fuji narrowed his eyes at the blonde. "And who are you to talk? As far as I'm concerned, you have as much potential as Yukimura did to hurt Reiko."

The two engaged in a staring contest. Kevin did admirably, but they were both interrupted by hysterical laughter from Reiko. "Kevin? Potential to hurt me? You are kidding, right? Oh, oyaji will get _such_ a kick out of this, Kev!" She managed between breaths.

"That he would." The blonde grinned, distracted by his best friend. "Remind me to tell him later?"

"No, I thought of it!" Reiko shot back before turning back to her brother-in-law. "Kevin has no capacity to harm me in that sense considering the fact that oyaji already sees him as a third son – after anuie and Kei, of course. You can't threaten to keep him away from his best friend."

He nudged her in the ribs for that. "Last I checked, I was _your_ best friend."

"Semantics." She waved it off, concentrating on the talk at hand. "Even if you were doing it out of concern… Has it occurred to you that I don't _need_ it? People learn from mistakes. Cosseting them just harms them in the long run. Yuuta-nii and I both know this. We could have hid behind you, sure. But we chose to break out because you were stifling us.

"People can't grow and mature as they are supposed to if they're coddled all their lives." She finished. "Think about it."

Piece said, Reiko leaned over to press a small green button that lowered the privacy screen, signaling the end of their conversation. "Please head to my parents' home now."

"Hai, Takeuchi-sama." The chauffeur replied. A glance in the rearview mirror proved that all occupants were alive and unharmed. He smiled inwardly, it would seem like the heiress's self-control was improving. Takeuchi Ryuu-sama would be glad to hear of it…

* * *

It took them a scant ten minutes to reach the Echizens' residence. As Fuji made to get out of the limo, he turned back to Reiko. "Will you be coming in?"

The Princess exchanged a look with Kevin briefly. The blonde reminded her. "The training menu, Ray. No doubt your Monkey cousin would be pitching a fit already."

"Tell them I said 'hi' then." Reiko addressed Fuji. "I'll be back tomorrow for dinner, probably."

It was as much a peace offering as she could offer – it was Sunday tomorrow, and Reiko voluntarily coming back for Sunday dinner without being assured of Fuji's absence… Well, it was a start.

"Reiko?" Fuji called his sister-in-law as he stood by the door, hesitating on closing it. She turned back to him. "About what you said… I'll try. I doubt I can change much now, but I'll try."

She smiled quietly. "Then that's all anyone can ask for. I'll see you tomorrow evening, Syuu-nii."

* * *

Only much later that night, after Reiko had cleared up the training menu for the run up to Nationals, did she manage find some time to herself for thinking. It had been a truly long day.

She's supervised the first half of training before leaving with Kevin to help Yumiko with a photo shoot – her sister-in-law had seen her and Kevin together and talked them into doing it. Apparently, they looked good together. It wasn't like they didn't know it: they'd been photographed together too many times by paparazzi in the past.

Then the next thing she knew, she had to rush down to Rikkai, of all places, to drag Syuu-nii out and then they'd fought. Yumiko would probably prefer the words 'talked it out' (after all, it was what they had done, albeit unconventionally) but it had felt largely like a fight.

It was one bright point of the day: she and Syuu-nii had made up, to some degree.

But Rikkai…

Now that thoughts of training and whatnot were settled, the memory of the past afternoon flooded back. She'd registered it and shock, of course, but in that moment, Reiko had chosen not to focus on it – damage control of her brother's erstwhile overprotectiveness had taken priority.

Seiichi cross-dressing.

It was like the gavel banging to a damning judgment; a sure sign that her eyes couldn't have been playing tricks on her, and Jiroh, and Jiroh's camera the night of the after party. After all, if you were to see your ex-boyfriend standing in drag next to the guy he cheated on you with… What was a girl to think?

Reiko knew what she was to think.

_I'll hold true to my words to ojii-sama and Kei. By the skin of our teeth. And then every little bit of talent, of passion, I have for this sport, I will unleash on you._

* * *

Away in Kanagawa, Yukimura Seiichi stared at the ceiling of his room. While Reiko contemplated his choice of clothing, he contemplated hers. She had been dressed in Rikkai colors, of all things and so feminine.

Completely unlike when they'd dated.

_Did I even know her?_

Fuji had accused him of 'breaking' her to try and ruin Hyotei's chances for Nationals, so that Rikkaidai would be less threatened. They certainly were threatened, considering that the Princess was in Hyotei. And that blonde…

Who was he?

_For all I know, Reiko was his from the beginning and our 'relationship' was _her_ tactic to try and weaken Rikkaidai. Whatever the case, it wouldn't work. We _will_ take Nationals again, even if I have to break her spirit on the courts._

* * *

**A/N: **Alright, so I finally more or less cleared up the Fuji-Reiko drama. They made up. Yay! I think it's rather rushed though. And messy. Reiko and Seiichi's giant misunderstanding continues to snowball… Oh avalanche, seriously. The eventual fall out's going to be a messy thing. I like that. I don't know if you would, but I hope you will enjoy it all the same! -iirse


	24. XXII: Over the Mountain

**A/N:** I'd love to explain the chapter title, but I'm not sure if it makes sense – and it might bore you. So anyway, I do have to warn you that I'm not going to be painting Seigaku (Tezuka) in a favorable light. If you think you can't take it, please turn back now. For those who still are reading, I hope you find this acceptable. -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 22 – **_**Over the Mountain**_

"Koshimae!" Kintarou yelled in that obnoxious way of his after Shitenhouji and Hyotei had concluded the formalities for their Nationals quarterfinal round. "Why were you alternate? I wanted to play you again!"

"Mada mada dane." Reiko rolled her eyes. Did the redhead never learn? Or was his Japanese simply that bad? It'd been three years and counting and he still couldn't speak her name right. Privately, she was rather thankful that she hadn't had to play since Atobe had listed her as alternate instead of Kabaji. After all, Ishida Gin _had_ left Shitenhouji in high school.

Unlike Hyotei, Seigaku and Rikkaidai, Shitenhouji's team had been altered since middle school. Shiraishi still remained as captain - that was a given. Funny enough, while their vice-captain had been all but non-existent back then, they now had co-vice-captains. Chitose and Tachibana shared that post, much to Chitose's chagrin.

He'd been grumbling about it when the two had faced Hyotei's Silver Pair in Doubles 1 earlier. Hyotei had won – but only by the skin of their teeth. And that wasn't because of the Takeuchi cousins' plans. It had truly been a close match.

Tachibana, on the other hand, seemed happy in his position. Not quite leader, but still in some control. It wasn't quite unexpected of Fudomine's ex-captain whose team had scattered to the four winds after middle school. They were in various different schools in Tokyo. Or at least the Kantou region now, from what little Reiko had seen in during Prefectural tournament and then tapes of the Kantou regionals.

It was Tachibana, not Shiraishi, who reined in Kintarou this time. "Kintarou-kun, I'm sure you wouldn't like to enrage Shiraishi, would you?" He questioned.

Shitenhouji's captain only had to make a move that seemed like he was going to unwrap the bandages around his arm and the freshman had shut up, hiding behind the nearest of his teammates – in this case, Oshitari Kenya.

"Some things never change, apparently." Tachibana laughed, turning back to Hyotei – Reiko, in particular. "But Kintarou's right, it _was_ a pity you didn't play. Given what An-chan told me about who you've been training with, it would have been an interesting match, regardless which match you might have played."

The greenette's smooth mask of impassive arrogance suddenly became much more false. Previously, it had been actually her old attitude, brought out by Kintarou's behavior. Right now, it was simply a façade. The mention of Tachibana An... Well, the only time she had spoken to the brunette about training had been when she was still dating Seiichi and they'd double dated. For all that they didn't play the game, all of them were still avid participants in the sport and it had largely dominated their conversation.

_Seiichi... Why are you still haunting me?_

Sensing his cousin's discomfort, Atobe chose then to intervene. "It would have been, definitely, but Rei's indication that she wanted to play came late. As did Kevin's."

"It's true." Oshitari chimed in from his position as (now official) fukubuchou. "It's going to be a pain working them into the lineup for singles."

Kevin and Reiko exchanged a look in the silence that ensued. Obviously, they weren't about to inform Atobe and Oshitari that they were more than proficient in playing doubles together. It would have been fun to give the Funny Pair (no pun intended) a run for their money in this round though - too bad they hadn't.

"So, you're admitting that you're just lousy then, Yuushi?" Oshitari Kenya drawled, smirking at his cousin.

The blunette rolled his eyes. "I didn't realize you were incapable of basic understanding of Japanese, Kenya."

"Oh, I'm not, Yuushi." Naniwa's speed star sighed dramatically. "Unfortunately, for all your perusal of literature, you seem to fail at seeing how one can read between the lines of your words.

"And you seem to enjoy making baseless assumptions." Yuushi shot back. "Tell me, Kenya, are you still failing your sciences with your baseless hypotheses?"

The brunette narrowed his eyes at Hyotei's tensai. "Why you –"

"Enough!" Atobe cut in before the cousins could threaten each other with bodily harm and/or a challenge in tennis. "Oshitari, we're leaving."

The blunette nodded curtly in response to his captain, leveling narrowed eyes on his cousin. "Just wait till I go back to Kansai for the holidays, Kenya."

"Oh, we'll settle this then." Kenya drawled in return, back in lazy mode.

"Oshitari!" Atobe and Tachibana both interrupted at the same time.

The cousins rolled their eyes as one. "Coming. Geez, hold your horses, Atobe." Yuushi muttered as he followed the rest of the Hyotei train.

As they left, one could hear Atobe declaiming. "...And you say ore-sama has never refereed matches between cousins, Oshitari Yuushi?"

* * *

Standing in the same stadium a few days later, Echizen Reiko and Atobe Keigo wouldn't have been able to believe that they were so carefree after quarterfinals. The lineup that Atobe had submitted a scant few minutes ago was proof of that.

_Hyotei:  
Singles 3 – Akutagawa Jiroh  
Doubles 2 – Mukahi Gakuto and Oshitari Yuushi  
Singles 2 – Echizen Reiko  
Doubles 1 – Ohtori Choutarou, Shishido Ryou  
Singles 1 – Kevin Smith  
Alternate – Atobe Keigo_

Even after Hyotei's consecutive wins in Singles 3 and Doubles 2, both taken at tiebreakers, neither cousin was prepared to face the reality that they had forced upon themselves with Reiko's plan that she had presented to their grandfather.

_They were scarcely rested from quarterfinals the previous day when Atobe's personal butler came up into the study where they were discussing preparation for the semifinals. "Keigo-bocchama, Takeuchi-sama is here is see both you and ojou-sama."_

_"Ojii-sama is here?" Reiko recovered from her surprise first. It was unlike her grandfather to spring surprise visits on his heir._

_"Indeed I am hime-chan." The older man walked into the room, startling the butler who had assumed the Takeuchi patriarch would be like anyone else and wait for his host's decision first. He'd forgotten who he was dealing with, apparently. Waving off his grandchildren who had begun to rise at his entrance, Takeuchi Ryuu sat himself down. _

_"You can leave us now." He gestured to the butler, who left after a nod from Atobe. Turning to the duo, he continued. "I've been keeping tabs on the circuit, as per your plans, hime-chan, and I find something curious."_

_Atobe shared a look with Reiko before electing to reply. "And what may that be, ojii-sama?"_

_The famous eyebrow went up. "You cannot tell me you do not know, Keigo. I'm dissatisfied with how you arrange your players. I don't care for the proper term but it's absurd."_

_"How so?" Reiko questioned. "We promised to win by the narrowest margins. That's precisely what Hyotei has been doing. They will never know what hit them in finals."_

_Yet Ryuu's eyebrow never lowered. "Precisely, it's what _Hyotei _has been doing. But _you _have not been doing. You aren't in the games at all, hime-chan! I wouldn't pretend to understand how tennis works but psychological attacks are another thing. They'll just think that Keigo's keeping you in reserve for the better opponents. Whatever wrecking of spirit you plan on... It isn't going to work very well without a shock factor. You may make an old man have to make some calls after all."_

It wasn't an empty threat. Both Reiko and Keigo knew that. If Takeuchi Ryuu wasn't satisfied with the way they handled the insult he felt had been dealt to Reiko, he would take action himself. Reiko had put herself as alternate with the hopes that her grandfather wouldn't realize but apparently Takeuchi Ryuu was as sharp when it came to mind games as he was in the business world, even when the mind games were played around a sport he didn't understand.

For that reason alone, Reiko found herself preparing to walk on the tournament courts despite her words previously never to be found on tournament grounds and courts. And her later promise never to be on tournament courts unless it was to destroy Yukimura Seiichi and Sanada Genichirou.

"One set match, Hyotei's Echizen Reiko versus Seigaku's Tezuka Kunimitsu."

Instantly, she spun to meet Atobe's eyes. The cousins had assumed she would be facing Fuji since it was only Singles 2 but apparently, Hyotei wasn't the only school to mess with their lineup this season. Neither cousin had planned on her facing Seigaku's captain.

But facts were facts. Rules were rules.

These rules, at least, she knew full well. She tried to convey what reassurance she could to her cousin through looks alone, before picking up her favorite racquet and stepping on the court.

Tezuka Kunimitsu would probably be fine practice for her plans of destruction anyway. If her grandfather knew of his part in her transfer…

_Well, wasn't this apt?_

* * *

It had begun simply enough. A basic testing of one another's limits. Simple serve, simple volleying. Basic skills. It wasn't till Tezuka brought out his Tezuka Zone that Reiko's eyes took on the gleam that made Kevin smile and Atobe smirk.

She was getting ready for the kill.

_Tezuka Zone is nothing compared to oyaji's Echizen Zone._

It was easy to let him go on using it, and for her to play his game. Echizen Nanjiroh had never taught either of his children the move - they'd improvised on what little they managed to pick up and refined their own versions. Reiko personally didn't like using it - it was boring, standing in one place and drawing the ball towards her. Tennis was for running around.

_Still..._ She smirked as she settled into position such that there would have been perfect symmetry along the line of the net if not for the fact that she and Tezuka were two different people, and the ball she had just sent hurtling towards him. "Mada mada dane."

The ball he volleyed back came smoothly to her, much like hers had been returned to him.

The crowd buzzed louder, the decibel increasing.

It had spiked earlier when the names of the opponents had been announced: Seigaku's captain versus what would have been his successor if not for her transfer... Echizen Reiko had never played against any Seigaku player officially, much less their captain. Would she lose simply because she had always been second to him and Fuji in terms of hierarchy in Seigaku? Or would skill prevail?

Yet on that count, people wondered. Reiko had taken Singles 1 at Nationals Finals against Yukimura long ago. Tezuka never had a chance to face Yukimura in matches. The assumption made was that Yukimura was stronger than Tezuka, since there was no record of the contrary. But on the flip side of the coin, there was no record to support it, save for Yukimura's title of Demigod.

A few of Hyotei's non-Regulars were actually speculating that point behind Kevin. The platinum blonde scoffed under his breath, muttering out of the side of his mouth to Atobe. "They seem to forget her title as well. And that the fact that hime-sama is acknowledged in the professional circuit."

"We never know, Kevin." Atobe reminded him. "A match can always go both ways. It depends on the players themselves." He narrowed his eyes at the Seigaku side of the court suddenly. "Tezuka's realized the futility of using his Zone, apparently. And he isn't too happy about it."

The diva was more than correct as Tezuka ceased using Tezuka Zone in favor of managing a Zero-Shiki Drop Shot.

"Game, Seigaku! 2 games to 1! Change court!"

As they settled into position and Reiko prepared to serve, to everyone's surprise, Tezuka spoke. "It would seem you're sentimental enough to learn Seigaku's techniques, Echizen."

Reiko actually dropped her ball in that moment, so great was the incredulity she felt. "_What?_" She asked in reflexive English.

"You bothered learning the Zone. Your loyalties are clear, it would seem." Her former captain replied, ever stoic.

It would seem that both players decided to be out-of-character to startle the spectators that day, considering that Reiko actually burst out laughing. "You forget who my oyaji is, _buchou_. The move you enjoy using so much is originally called Echizen Zone. It doesn't faze me for a reason." Smirking, she arched back and served. "I have loyalty, definitely. I return loyalty where it's given."

Tezuka was about to reply when the ball he returned hit the net and fell into his court, neatly split into two.

The chatter from the bleachers nearly doubled in volume. _What _was_ that serve?_ Reiko's smirk only became more pronounced. "Samurai Serve."

Only a few minutes later, the referee already had to call. "Game, Hyotei. 2 games to 2!"

To her surprise, Seigaku's captain didn't bother using his Zero Shiki Serve. Shrugging inwardly, Reiko returned the serve only to hear him intone. "5 shots."

The murmurs of "Saikikanpatsu no Kiwami" from the spectators were clear. "Two. You speak of loyalty like you're sure it's given, Echizen Reiko."

"Hyotei's loyalty is more than Seigaku ever offered me. Three." The Princess retorted. It was unfair, perhaps, seeing how Hyotei's loyalty was partly that strong because of the ties that their families all had and the power they held as a collective unit to annihilate whoever they chose.

"I would hardly count you as a good gauge of loyalty, given your associations with Rikkaidai. Four." Tezuka was unusually callous in that last statement.

Atobe saw his cousin freezing up before she realized it. "Rei!"

His yell came too late though. The ball that Tezuka had sent hurtling towards her neatly struck her arm, eliciting a cry. That was all it took for Atobe to spring up from his position on the bench to run to Reiko's side. He glared at Tezuka, barely resisting from spitting out. "Using your beloved tennis to physically harm people is going too far, even for you, Tezuka."

The brunette was wordless to Atobe's accusation.

"Referee, my player forfeits this match." The diva declared.

Reiko grabbed his arm. "Kei!"

"You're not playing." Atobe firmly replied, gaze steely. "I don't care what you say. You're in no condition to play. Hell, I'm not letting you play after he played dirty. Kevin!"

Kevin had jumped down from the bleachers regardless of everyone's protests and had approached by then. "I'll take Ray. Come on, hime."

"I don't forfeit matches." She protested.

"You do now, Reiko-san." Ohtori interrupted, as he and Shishido approached. "We'll finish this at Doubles 1. Go ahead, Smith-san."

Atobe sighed. "Go, Rei. Ohtori said they'd take Kantou third at Singles 3, and they did. I don't care if you didn't forfeit before. As your cousin _and_ captain, I'm telling you: you're forfeiting."

She winced. Kei had never played the captain card on her before. Thankfully, Shishido interjected his agreement then. Reiko hadn't been lying when she said Hyotei was loyal. Shishido might have been disconcerted by Choutarou's more forceful personality coming through but he agreed with their sentiments. "You needn't worry about us, Echizen. After the insult he dealt you? We'll kick their ass."

Kevin tugged his best friend then. Reiko silently went along. Against the face of her cousin's determination to protect her, coupled with the persuasion of Doubles 1, she caved. She knew as well as they did that the comment about her ex-boyfriend had done her in. Reiko was so far gone that she didn't even realize that she walked past Rikkaidai's Regulars shielded by Kevin's arm around her shoulders.

Turning back from watching them go, Atobe's icy gaze pierced Tezuka and he cut his eyes to the warm-up courts in challenge. Reiko forfeiting didn't mean that the insult would go on unvented.

Tezuka merely inclined his head in acceptance.

A snap of his fingers brought Oshitari to replace him as he feigned important business before he strode off after Seigaku's captain for the warm-up courts.

* * *

"... The non-regulars say that Atobe's on the bench for this round. It would be interesting to see what lineup Hyotei has." Yanagi commented.

To his surprise, no one replied. The data master had been so focused on the screen of his phone where he was cataloguing all the data he had managed to collate that day that he had failed to notice that everyone else had stopped walking. Well, that might be attributed to the fact that his eyes were perpetually closed. He actually almost smashed face first into Niou.

Yanagi was thankful he hadn't. Yagyuu's ire wasn't something he wanted to deal with. The two were more alike than people gave them credit for.

He peered at what they were looking at. Curious and curiouser, as that book said. Exiting the courts where the Seigaku-Hyotei semifinals were being held were Echizen and a blonde he couldn't quite place.

Well, rumor had it that Hyotei had acquired a new Regular. That probably was him. But Atobe on the bench, Echizen and the wildcard out of the running... This was very strange.

"Isn't that Smith?" Kirihara chose then to break the silence.

Sanada cocked his head to study the blonde, turning his attention away from the way that Yukimura was staring at Reiko. "The hair certainly looks like it." He agreed reluctantly after a moment.

"He's a lot taller now. I didn't notice at the fair..." The seaweed head commented; lapsing into silence as the blonde glared at them as he walked past, as though daring them to address him and Reiko.

He needn't have worried, seeing how Rikkaidai remained silent till they were out of earshot. Then all eyes turned to Kirihara. "What do you mean by you didn't notice at the fair, brat?" Niou demanded.

"I'm starting to think senpai-tachi are all deaf, blind and stupid from playing 'Mura-buchou too much..." Akaya grumbled under his breath. "He came with 'nee-chan to the fair to tow Fuji away!"

Marui stared at him. "Are you sure you weren't hallucinating?"

"He wasn't." Yukimura answered before their only second year could start another Trouble Trio episode. "That person certainly was there."

Niou frowned. "Who _is_ he anyway? Seaweed brat?"

"I'm not a seaweed brat, Niou-senpai!" The aforementioned brat protested.

Yagyuu sighed, putting a restraining hand on Niou's shoulder. "That's enough, Masaharu. I, for one, would like to know who that was. I certainly don't recall seeing him at any Atobe- or Takeuchi-hosted events."

"I dunno about those, Yagyuu-senpai." Kirihara shrugged. "But that was Kevin Smith. He was the captain of the American team for the Goodwill Games in middle school."

Sanada nodded. "It stands to reason that Akaya would remember him. You did play him, after all. Despite the fact that Echizen had to take your place as alternate during the game."

"Things happen!" Kirihara protested, his eyes widened to epic proportions as they swung in Yukimura's direction, praying that his captain wouldn't see it as a loss and assign more three-years-belated punishment when they returned to Kanagawa and training sessions.

Luckily for him, Yukimura wasn't present beyond the physical sense once Akaya had spoken Kevin's name. The blunette's mind had recollected that the name was the same one that Reiko had often used in passing in their conversations with much affection.

She'd cut their conversation once because of an incoming call from this person. She'd spoken of him in passing as much as she had of Atobe and Fuji. They were close, to the point that she felt no discomfort mentioning him in conversation. To the point that she felt no discomfort about his place in her life.

Unlike the way they had been, when she would blush at being called his girlfriend and whatnot.

Just who was this Kevin Smith to Reiko?

The way he took her hand, had his arm around her shoulders… All those easy touches that bespoke affection and a comfortable lengthy relationship. Yukimura felt the green eyed monster rear its head.

Were they together all along? Or perhaps their relationship had meant so little to her that Reiko could simply move on and find another boyfriend so fast.

"Buchou!" Akaya called, large eyes worried, as the rest of Rikkaidai started moving to a position which would enable them to watch the Hyotei-Seigaku Doubles 1 match.

He shook himself from the cobwebs of those thoughts. If he had to think about that, he'd think about it outside and after tennis. Right now, watching the match and planning strategy was more important. There were things you got from watching things live that you didn't get from a tape.

_Is it just me, or is Hyotei playing around with Seigaku the way a tiger would play around with its food before consuming it?_

* * *

"You..." Atobe delivered the Hamatsu no Rondo, earning him another game against Tezuka. "Are despicable."

The bespectacled brunette served a Zero-Shiki Serve, earning him a service ace. He had been silent. Atobe would say his piece, Tezuka knew from experience. He didn't need to ask for an explanation. Hyotei's King would make sure he heard it whether he wanted to or not.

Fact was he was mildly interested to see what Atobe would say for Reiko.

"Contrary to popular belief, Rei doesn't tell ore-sama everything." Atobe admitted freely as he watched Tezuka's serve go past him - he couldn't be bothered to fight for the other's service game. Not when he was using the Zero-Shiki serve. "She keeps quiet about things she thinks ore-sama doesn't need to know. Ore-sama doesn't pry, but when it's Rei, ore-sama notices things."

The score now at 5 games to 4 in Atobe's favor, he served. "Rei probably thinks ore-sama didn't see, but ore-sama did see what happened at the Prefectural tournament." Arching an eyebrow at the lob that Tezuka gave him, Atobe chose to smash it.

It was a smash that the brunette had no hope of returning. "Cyclone Smash, ore-sama is sure you recognize it. Ore-sama recognized what Rei was saying back then. She doesn't like how you let Inui associate with Yanagi freely."

Another serve sailed into Tezuka's court. "And then you speak of loyalty to her. It's obvious enough to ore-sama, of course." The diva returned the ball that came flying to him with greater strength than before. He obviously had struck a nerve. Smirking, Atobe lobbed in the ball. He'd return the favor then. "You accused her of having no consideration for her team, and she quit."

Tezuka's startled expression on his normally stoic face was in part due to Atobe's astute divination, but it was largely because his smash had been flawlessly returned by Fuji's Higuma Otoshi.

"You're not the only one with a tensai on his team who can perform that move, Tezuka." Atobe drawled. "You're blind to things you don't wish to see. And you remain the same."

"Hyotei just lost a match due to Echizen's incompetence as a player. I daresay she's gotten worse since she joined your team, seeing how she had to forfeit." Tezuka said the last word with distaste. "Hyotei's standard, as a whole, seems rather poor this season for all that they have a professional player in their midst."

Inwardly, Atobe smirked at their success in projecting an outwardly image of barely scraping it through. Still, it wouldn't do for Hyotei's image to be so damaged... "It seems your memory is faulty as well, seeing how you've forgotten that it took the combined efforts of Rei's best friend, ore-sama and Hyotei's Doubles 1 before she was coerced into forfeiting. Hyotei takes care of our own."

Tezuka frowned slightly. They'd reached match point already, and it would seem that Hyotei wasn't as deadbeat as they had appeared to be. Still, it could be just Atobe. "And weakens them." Muga no Kyouchi came out and he delivered what had always been Atobe's weakness: Sanada's Zan.

The heir just rolled his eyes, Ice World long in play. It was easy enough to strike back and win. Game, set and match. "Think what you will. At least ore-sama doesn't falsely accuse someone completely innocent while letting off someone who has actually shared information with rival teams before." Atobe flipped his racquet in a move similar to Kikumaru's favorite as he made his way to the gate out of the court. "Like ore-sama said, Rei thinks that as long as she doesn't tell ore-sama, ore-sama wouldn't know. She forgets that Kevin can speak. Inui just easily gave Rei's phone number to Yanagi. In the pro circuits, someone who gives one piece of information is liable to give more. This might not be in those circuits, but nonetheless..."

Letting the sentence hang, Atobe strolled out of the court, heading back to the tournament ground where he was certain that Doubles 1 would be telling him that they won. By the skin of their teeth, as planned, but they would have won.

The only annoying part would be seeing Sanada and Yukimura, and Rikkaidai in general, there.

* * *

Reiko was all but slumped against Kevin's shoulder by the time they had made their way to their seats on the bus that Hyotei had exclusively for their Regulars. The blonde supposed that it was expected. Reiko hadn't really expected what happened on court to come to pass. Chances were that it was the farthest thing from what she anticipated. Still, he was worried.

Being the concerned best friend, he nudged her slightly. "Ray? You okay?"

Her eyes were clear when they met his. "If I had to forfeit just now, how am I going to face Sanada or Seiichi in Finals? Because I don't doubt that Ohtori and Shishido will do as promised and win the round for us."

"Oh, Ray." He sighed. It was a question neither of them had an answer to after all. "What did Atobe say to this?"

Reiko's scoff was watery. "He quoted some adage at me. I think it was from China? 'We'll cross that bridge when we get to it,' he said. We haven't even decided who would face which opponent."

She got a curious look from Kevin for that statement.

"I don't know if I can face Seiichi. And a part of me _wants_ to face Sanada and destroy him because that part of me childishly believes it's his fault. And then there's the part of me..."

"There's that part of you that doesn't want Atobe to face Sanada because it'll be as bad as you facing Yukimura." Kevin said what she left unsaid.

Reiko nodded in affirmation. "But then, I know that I stand a better chance of defeating Seiichi as per the plan I gave ojii-sama. And ojii-sama will never be satisfied unless I deliver as promised. If I don't success in doing what I proposed, he _will_ make those calls."

It was a dilemma of the highest order. Whether to run the risk of undoing all the prevention they had managed and save both of them some heartache, or to minimize the risk of the former and face that heartache. It was no wonder that Atobe postponed the decision: he probably couldn't decide himself.

"It's so convoluted, Kev." Reiko sighed. "Did you know because of this, Misaki-senpai and Kei aren't even talking? And they're childhood friends at that."

Kevin blinked at her in surprise. He would never have thought that, given how distant the two were whenever he saw them. He told Reiko as much.

The Princess gave him a rueful look. "That's what I meant. They used to be so close. Like best friends, almost. Oshitari and I used to joke they would end up together, but they both have absolutely no interest in one another."

They lapsed into silence.

"I hate love relationships." Reiko suddenly said. "They just ruin everything else. Family, friendships..."

The blonde felt an inscrutable need to add some alternative perspective. "Yet it's only in these situations that you find those who really care. And it did help you make up with Fuji."

"True..." She sighed, subsiding. "I just want the season to end, Kev. I want the season to end so I don't need to see Seiichi anymore. He graduates this year, after all. There won't be any more encounters after the season ends. Why can't the end come faster?"

Her best friend didn't have an answer for that. No one did, after all. He didn't bother trying to come up with one, knowing Reiko didn't expect one. Neither he did he bother reminding her that the longer end took in coming, the longer they could wait before she and Atobe had to face their dilemma.

He was certain she knew anyway.

She didn't need the reminder.

* * *

Back in the stadium, as the formalities for the semifinals were concluded with Atobe and Tezuka being minimally polite to one another, Fuji Syuusuke watched on. He wanted so much to flay Tezuka alive in the most painful torturous manner possible right now. But somehow, he suspected that Reiko wouldn't appreciate it.

She had implied as much, after all.

So he reined it in. It wasn't quite worth risking their relationship over - especially since they'd just reconciled.

Instead, he considered her match. It was the first time today that he'd seen Atobe do something he actually approved. Atobe had just fought off Reiko's protests and forced her to go along with what he deemed was best for her.

"_Kei runs things differently. He essentially trusts that blood runs true, and so he trusts that by that, I know my limits but he will interfere when absolutely necessary." _Reiko had said, a long time ago.

It appeared that today's intervention was an 'absolutely necessary' situation. Knowing the details behind Reiko's disappearance, Fuji agreed with Atobe's actions. Tezuka might not have known what he was saying, but it had obviously hit Reiko hard. She had been in no condition to play.

Not the sport that she and her ex-boyfriend lived, breathed, met, bonded, and broke up over.

She was just too stubborn to admit it.

If Fuji had his way, she wouldn't face anyone but family in tennis until she was healed. But Atobe had come to him after he returned from whatever 'important business' he told the referee he had to attend to. Fuji had a strong suspicion that Atobe had given Tezuka a talking to, seeing how both captains had disappeared and reappeared at approximately the same time.

But he digressed. Atobe had asked actually asked Fuji's opinion. That was the first surprise. The second one, which erased all thought of the first from his mind, was the question Atobe had asked. Atobe had asked him his opinion on who should he let Reiko face in Nationals Finals: Yukimura or Sanada.

He had stared at Hyotei's King like the diva had grown another head, a monkey's tail, bat wings, and started to sparkle in the sun.

Almost as though he had read Fuji's mind, the captain of Hyotei's tennis team had explained that he felt the only way Reiko could properly heal was if she closed that chapter of her life properly – by finding out the truth behind the incident she had witnessed.

Fuji still didn't know if he'd given the right answer.

He'd told Atobe simply. "By your theory then, the one who hurt her the most would be the one for her to face. And I doubt that's Sanada – she had no emotion attachment to him."

Atobe had walked away without another word after that.

He didn't know if that method was right, but maybe it was. _After all, 'nee-san did say that people had to learn from their mistakes, didn't she? And didn't Reiko say the same thing?_

* * *

**A/N: **Fuji's come a long way, hm? I don't expect him to change overnight. He doesn't think fully like Atobe, and I doubt he ever will. But at least he's considering an alternative point of view, so to speak.

This is a huge chapter that took forever to write. Seiichi-Reiko action doesn't take center stage here, because I thought it'd be nice to clear up the whole Reiko-Seigaku issue first. It isn't fully cleared yet – I think I just need one or two more scenes to settle it nicely. But other than that, the main focus now will be on Reiko and Seiichi. And also Atobe and Sanada, of course – they're all interlinked after all.

The thought that it's all ending soon is almost enough to make me cry. This story has been around for so long that it just feels weird to think of it as 'almost complete!' Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it. See you next week! -iirse


	25. XXIII: Insurmountable

**A/N:** I'm sorry I'm late! I was rushing to complete the 50 000 words needed to win the first ever Camp NaNo! I'm so sorry!

To clarify something from the last chapter, Reiko forfeited her match against Tezuka meaning that by default, Seigaku won that match. Tezuka then faced Atobe unofficially, away from the tournament grounds – they played on the warm-up courts. (To the reviewer that asked this, I hope this explains things. I normally PM to answer but well, if you hit anonymous, I can't reply that way!)

Anyhow, we proceed to Nationals Finals then. It's time to begin tying up loose ends, and resolve conflicts and essentially move the story towards conclusion. Basically? It's showdown time, with Hyotei-Rikkai action taking the stage, front and center. I hope it's worth the wait and you enjoy it. Let me know what you think? (: –iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 23 – **_**Insurmountable**_

As Mukahi easily leapt into the air and delivered a last smooth Shooting Star, the spectators were abuzz. Hyotei, the dark horse of the circuit this season had just won their first Nationals Finals match, after all. The way they had been barely scraping through their way to the top had made speculators suggest that they would simply lose to Rikkaidai at Finals.

Singles 3 of Hiyoshi Wakashi versus Kirihara Akaya had suggested as much.

It wasn't a set match - that wasn't Reiko's style. But she had put Hiyoshi there, knowing that his chances of winning were fairly low. Jiroh might have done better, but well. The cousins had reasoned that Sakaki needed to see the capabilities of next year's third years at their best.

Hyotei hadn't shown any new moves, sans Reiko's Samurai Serve in her forfeited match. Yet Mukahi and Oshitari had delivered them in bulk.

As was his wont, Mukahi's technique names all involved some natural phenomena. Shooting Star was a fast speed return that used more power than one would have expected from the acrobat. And it held the speed that came from constant training against Ohtori and Shishido. Its serve counterpart, named Comet for lack of originality, had been a no-touch ace. Tornado Smash had been easily returned, but in return, Mukahi had finished Asteroid during the game. Playing on the acrobat's flexibility, it was difficult to return without going out.

And this was coming from the redhead that people always said dragged down Hyotei's tensai.

A player normally delivered one new move in a game, not as many as Mukahi did. And Oshitari simply integrated moves that he normally saved for singles into this match. To the spectators, they were all new because well, Oshitari Yuushi hardly played singles officially.

"Game, set and match, Hyotei's Oshitari-Mukahi pair! 6 games to 4!" The referee announced, as the electronic scoreboard flickered to reflect the result. After a pause, he continued. "One set match, Hyotei's Atobe versus Rikkaidai's Sanada!"

As if the newly finished Doubles 2 match wasn't enough gossip for the spectators, this announcement only notched up the noise level. If Atobe was playing Sanada, who then would play against Yukimura who was likely to take Singles 1?

"Atobe to serve!"

* * *

In reality, Atobe and Reiko had almost fallen out over the lineup for Nationals Finals. They had to make sure that Hyotei would make it to Singles 1, yet at the same time not have set matches - that would be completely unfair to their teammates. They would have done it for them, definitely. But for most of them, it was their last season. Kabaji and Hiyoshi could sit it out, definitely, but for the rest? They deserved a good ending to their high school tennis 'career.'

"It's a matter of predicting then." Reiko summed up for Atobe.

Her cousin nodded. "Unfortunately, we don't do much calculation of odds the way Seigaku and Rikkai does."

The greenette shrugged, studying the list of names for both teams in front of her. "As I see it, we probably have to take Singles 1 and 2. Doubles doesn't need to be changed - Oshitari, Mukahi and Shishido deserve their last match. It's just Singles 3."

"Jiroh, Kevin, Kabaji or Hiyoshi." Atobe summed up, choosing to leave the question of who was to take which Singles slot between the two of them for later. That decision would probably breed disagreement and would definitely take longer to resolve.

Reiko gestured in the affirmative. "If we go by the logic of last matches, Jiroh-senpai should get Singles 3. Kabaji shouldn't mind. If Rikkaidai's seniors want to play their last match as well, Yanagi would likely take that slot and he's likely to lose."

"Kevin doesn't mind sitting it out." The diva added. "It's just Hiyoshi wanting in, right now. But you realize that Kirihara might take that slot as well?"

"As a final gauge of capable he is, perhaps?" Reiko suggested. She had considered the possibility as well. Unlike Hyotei that had both her and Kevin as extras, Rikkaidai only had one extra rather than Hyotei's three. "Sakaki-sensei did say that he would like to see what the sophomores are capable of in order to determine your successor. Hiyoshi didn't do too well as captain in middle school, apparently. I doubt he includes me in that list of sophomores."

Atobe recollected _that_ conversation. Reiko and Kevin's skill didn't need testing, definitely. But both were new. The Regulars had no issue taking instruction from them, having seen them in action too many times and the rest of the club followed their lead. But without them there… Well, it wouldn't be easy. It would make more sense to appoint one of the other Regulars as the next captain.

Whatever the case… "No one can replace ore-sama." He sniffed disdainfully at the implication of her use of the word 'successor.'

"Be serious, Kei." Contradicting her own statement, Reiko stuck her tongue out at her cousin. "Ohtori's the only one in there right now. It might be a good idea to let Hiyoshi play. The odds for Jiroh's win _may_ be better, but well, we do need losses if we are to get to Singles 1."

Atobe considered the suggestion. "At the same time, it isn't confirmed that Hiyoshi would lose, so it would be a decent match and not a set one."

"Precisely." When her cousin nodded his agreement, Reiko picked up her previously discarded pen and filled in the slot for Singles 3. "All that's left now is Singles 1 and 2, Kei."

They stared at each other in silence for a long moment.

"I think..." They said at the same time.

Atobe beat her to it. "Spit it out, Rei."

Judging from her cousin's look, and coupled with the fact that she really wanted to get it over and done with, Reiko complied. "I think you should take Singles 1."

An eyebrow arched in question prompted her to continue. "A part of me really wants to destroy Sanada because that part of me blames him more than Seiichi."

"And you don't want to face Yukimura." Atobe said the words that she refused to say.

Suddenly incensed by the (too true) accusation, Reiko flared up. "You can't tell me you _want_ to face Sanada, Kei!"

"You know that the odds of you beating Yukimura are higher than mine. It makes more sense that you take Singles 1." Atobe reasoned, wishing he could take the easy way out she offered. But someone had to be the voice of reason here. Someone had to take the high road. "I don't want to face Sanada anymore than you want to face Yukimura, Rei. But all the plans so far would be wasted if I were to lose Singles 1. I'm not narcissistic enough to believe that I would certainly win."

Reiko deflated. All this facts that her cousin laid before her... She knew all of them too well, having played around with them in her head since Finals had become a reality. "I know. It's just..."

"I know." Atobe echoed her. "But Rei, we all have to face reality eventually. You can't avoid it forever. And you'll never heal unless you get some form of closure."

He sighed. "You're not going to get it unless you play Yukimura and pry them out of him." Under his breath, he muttered. "We both wouldn't."

It had been that statement he had meant to go unheard that convinced Reiko. If Kei felt that he needed to play Sanada to be satisfied, she would let him. And she would play Yukimura - but whether the outcome was what her cousin expected or not was another story.

She picked up her pen and slowly filled in the familiar kanji of their names into Singles 1 and 2 respectively.

* * *

He slammed another Tannhauser into Sanada's court without regret.

Tennis was familiar. It was normal. It was... safe. It didn't have all that confusion of emotion that he felt when off the courts.

Atobe wasn't too surprised with Sanada returned it easily. Without Yukimura playing against Reiko in any adjacent court, Rikkaidai's fukubuchou was in no way as distracted as he had been the last few times they had played. It was an old serve anyway. When Fuu was came breezing right at him, Atobe practically anticipated it, flipping his racquet to return it slightly off timing so he just lobbed it.

Sanada played neatly into his trap, smashing Ka into the diva's side of the court.

To nearly everyone's surprise, Atobe met the smash that had destroyed Tezuka's Tezuka Zone and flung it back across the net. The ball seemingly vanished before landing as still as the ground beneath them neatly on the lines marking the corner of the court.

"Game, Atobe, 5 games all!" The referee called.

"Venuse Return." Atobe calmly stated, smirking at Sanada.

On the bleachers, Reiko sighed. Did Kei always have to be so dramatic? And why _was_ he so fixated on that legend anyway?

* * *

Sanada shifted uneasily inwardly as he watched Atobe's smirk. He, too, had felt like Hyotei had been fooling around when he watched their Doubles 1 match against Seigaku. Playing against Hyotei had always been challenging. The Emperor loathed admitting it, but Hyotei was amongst the best. Yet during this season's Nationals, they barely scraped through in order to proceed to the next round… It was like their standard had dropped overnight.

Atobe during the whole match and made it seem like he had nothing new. They had practically been taking points and games alternately. It had come to duce almost every game.

Then suddenly he destroyed a move that Sanada had used earlier in the game. Venuse Return, as Atobe had flashily named his new technique, had been flawlessly executed. It wasn't a move freshly finished and completed during the game. It was a technique that Atobe had had in his arsenal all along.

_You're toying with us. That's what Echizen meant by breaking of spirit, isn't it, Atobe? _Sanada narrowed his eyes at Hyotei's captain as he served._ Rikkaidai doesn't lose. Losing is not accepted._

* * *

"I didn't intend to use this here, but it's just as well that I have to then." Sanada managed as he returned Atobe's ball. With the score at 6 games to 5, 15 all, in Hyotei's favor, Rikkaidai was getting desperate. "Mizu."

The ball didn't quite vanish, but it seemed like it passed through Atobe's racquet.

"30 – 15!"

"Do you know why Venuse is special, Sanada?" Atobe asked casually, as he prepared to serve. "It's because it defies all known logic and makes the impossible happen. And when the impossible happens and the other party regrets it… It's too late."

Hyotei's captain served, and as with the Venuse Return, the ball appeared precisely at the point where the corner of the court was marked by white lines.

"30 – all!"

Atobe smirked, feeling the irony as he spoke. "I know what you did that night. And it's obvious what you want. Question is… Will you regret it?" He served, but Sanada remained frozen as his words hit home. No one had pointblank told him that he'd been seen yet.

"40 – 30! Match point!"

Irony tasted bitter on his tongue, Atobe found. What he said to Sanada… Did it not apply to himself as well? Did he honestly want to admit it aloud and put his cards on the table? It was obvious that nothing would come of it.

Temporary insanity, he named it, in that moment.

_No, I know what I feel. _He rejected that thought. _But I know what's for the best. Right now… I don't know if it's the right person, but it's definitely the wrong time. If it's the right person, the right time will come._

_I'll take my own advice. It's time to move on._

He served a final Venuse Serve.

"Game, set and match! 7 games to 5, Hyotei's Atobe!"

Sanada didn't even bother to conclude match formalities, he simply walked off in a daze, leaving Atobe to look after his retreating back knowingly – he was going to think, certainly.

And that was all Hyotei's King could ask for. The rest was up to Rikkaidai's Emperor.

* * *

"One set match, Hyotei's Shishido-Ohtori pair versus Rikkaidai's Niou-Yagyuu pair!" The referee announced.

Winded, Atobe was too out of breath to watch the match. He just found the nearest most isolated part of the bleachers and plopped his butt down, focusing on getting himself back under control once he'd walked off the court. That match with Sanada had truly been tiring. He wasn't quite used to the Venuse techniques yet. It still took a toll on his stamina. That might actually be because he and Reiko had agreed on keeping new moves for only Finals, so there had been no opportunity to test them beyond team and family.

Thank kami for his tennis-obsessed uncle and cousins or his stamina wouldn't have allowed him to use the Venuse serve to win that last service game.

Atobe was so concentrated on his breathing that he nearly jumped out of his skin when a towel was dropped on his head and a bottle thrust into his face. He looked up to see Misaki holding it loosely, wordlessly.

"You forgot." The Nakamura heiress said simply, only settling herself into a nearby seat when he took the bottle of cold water from her.

He didn't quite know what to say to that. They were old friends, certainly. But they were also old friends who had a major fight recently and hadn't spoken since. He wasn't quite sure how to speak to her now. It would seem that the brunette girl had the same problem as she remained equally quiet and simply let the awkward silence build.

But people always had to crack sooner or later. Misaki cracked first, giving up on attempting phrasing something delicately. "Honestly speaking, it's weird not talking to you at all." The words rushed out helter-skelter, unedited and unchecked. "We've never fought for this long in a while, ne?"

And well… Atobe couldn't ignore his childhood friend, after all. "Not since we were kids, Misaki."

"I thought you were a monkey, not a goat, Keigo." She returned, smiling slightly at his indignant expression at her use of a really bad pun. Jokes aside, they had other matters that were more serious to clear up. "Really, Keigo, what did happen?"

The heir shook his head. "Honestly? Stress over too many things. Rei's disappearance, pushing for Kevin's transfer to hurry up, Kantou and Nationals... I do have a limit, Misaki. I wouldn't pretend otherwise. Not to an old friend, at least."

"And I was stressed as well but mainly over Reiko-chan." Misaki sighed. "You know I don't deal well under duress. It was all the stress talking, and then snapping and taking it out on each other."

"Seems rather trite in retrospect?" Atobe offered as an olive branch.

She took it. "That's for sure." Misaki paused, gauging his current state before she chose her words carefully again. This was far more delicate a subject than their fight, she felt. "I worried for you too, Keigo."

"Ore-sama doesn't need people to worry about ore-sama but if you feel the need... Ore-sama guesses that even Nakamura Misaki can't resist the great me." Atobe arrogantly replied.

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Oh, shut up with the ore-sama, Keigo. It just makes it more obvious that you're covering up."

He caved. They both knew each other too well that he'd knew when he started using the pronoun that he was merely stalling for time and delaying the inevitable. "I know what you speak of, Misaki. I'm alright, I promise."

"You do seem better since you finished your match." The heiress observed.

Atobe shrugged an attempt at nonchalance. "I decided to take my own advice. I won't live in denial, certainly. However, if it's meant to be, it's meant to be. In the meantime, I'm not going to pine. There's more to life than that." He smirked arrogantly at her. "Are you scoping out the competition, Misaki?"

"Keigo!" She protested, flushing a pale pink.

"What?" The diva teased. "One would have thought your actions in recent weeks rather jealous, actually. You keep glaring at him whenever you're with us and we encounter him."

At that, Misaki burst out laughing, earning herself that soon-to-be infamous raised eyebrow. She explained. "Yuushi suggested jealousy as well. I agreed, but shot down the idea simultaneously. I was jealous, Keigo. But I was jealous as a friend that someone so unworthy was taking up your time when you could do so much better."

* * *

A short distance away, Reiko watched her cousin tease Misaki and the Nakamura heiress retaliate; their relationship restored to approximately the same state it had been at when Reiko had first arrived at Hyotei.

She smiled quietly to herself.

Kei had seemed more at peace with himself since he stepped off the courts after that match with Sanada. It would seem that his idea that playing Sanada to attain some form of closure had worked for him. For that, Reiko was happy for her cousin, but she wasn't about to delude herself that something similar would happen between her and Seiic–Yukimura in their Singles 1 match. If that match should even come to pass.

And whether that match came to pass... That depended on how well Hyotei's Silver Pair acquitted themselves against Rikkaidai's Platinum. Niou and Yagyuu hadn't attain the name of Platinum Pair (as Niou said, it was the best metal in the world) without cause.

The Princess turned her focus back on the game that she had abandoned observing in favor of watching her cousin and Misaki previously.

It was like history repeated itself and her hand slipped, causing her to drop the open bottle of water she had been holding. Reiko was so startled by ongoing game that she didn't notice the annoyed looks that Hiyoshi and Mukahi had simultaneously shot her when they'd gotten splashed by the sudden rainfall.

Jiroh turned to face her with a rueful look. "They're doing horribly, I know." The blonde had narrowly missed being wet as well – he was seat just outside the 'splash zone.'

"Oshitari and Mukahi were more in sync than they are." She responded, her mind on automatic comparison and her mouth just spitting out the facts as she saw it. Any filtering had been killed by the shock she just got. "And our Doubles 1 is supposed to have attained Synchro?"

Jiroh had no words to offer her.

* * *

Unknown to Reiko, on the bench, Sakaki privately agreed with her sentiments. This match, as he watched it, was a good as lost.

At his behest, Hyotei's training manager and captain had put in Hiyoshi and Ohtori into the lineup to test their mettle. But Sakaki was now at a loss. Hiyoshi had lost Singles 3 to Kirihara Akaya. Ohtori was losing Doubles 1 - he didn't even need to watch to determine the end result, seeing how Rikkaidai's Doubles 1 was utilizing Synchro while Hyotei's was failing at activating theirs.

In any case, they had both lost. Winning had given Atobe his spot as captain. How now would he determine the successor for the subsequent year if Hiyoshi and Ohtori both tied?

He'd hoped that Ohtori would win Doubles 1 but it was a lost hope now.

While both Shishido and Ohtori's speed were more than up to par, and their techniques as refined as ever, they weren't as in sync as they had been when Atobe had suggested them for a fixed Doubles pair when they had been middle school students. Ohtori was playing in largely the same way, but Shishido wasn't. He was _off_, for lack of a better word.

He was trying to do too much at some points and too little at others, almost as though he didn't know his partner anymore.

And in a way, it was true. Ohtori Choutarou, as a sophomore in middle school had little backbone to speak of. He wasn't even considered for captaincy, and the position had automatically been given to Hiyoshi. But now, Ohtori had grown to take charge where necessary. And Shishido didn't know how to deal with it.

As Niou delivered the winning Laser Beam, Sakaki sighed. It was going to be a hard choice, but it would be definitely difficult to justify since both potential successors had conveniently lost their Nationals matches. Not to mention that Ohtori had always played doubles as a Regular while Hiyoshi was fixated on singles, playing doubles only when he had to.

* * *

"Game, set and match! 6 games to 4, Rikkaidai's Niou-Yagyuu pair!" The referee called.

Up in the bleachers, Reiko shut her eyes briefly. Singles 1 was in her hands now. Whatever might happen during the match, she _had_ to win.

"Singles 1, one set match, Hyotei's Echizen versus Rikkaidai's Yukimura!"

All the memories flooding her mind, they didn't matter now. All that mattered right now was winning.

That's all that mattered.

Losing… Losing wasn't allowed.

* * *

"Smooth. Service end. Echizen to serve." The referee wasn't exclaiming as he had the whole day. That was how palpable the tension between Reiko and Yukimura was.

She proceeded to destroy 4 balls and take the first game with Samurai Serve. Princesses were supposed to be fragile glass dolls, weren't they? Well, this one wasn't, she determined, eyes cold.

Across the net, Yukimura had anticipated this. He served Vanishing Serve, which she returned to obtain Shadow Sound in exchange.

What the Demigod hadn't expected was Reiko to let Shadow Sound slide past her. She tried to get it, but she kept missing. He frowned inwardly. While she had only faced it in one match, she already had broken it - albeit only at an imprecise science.

"Game, Rikkai's Yukimura! 1 game all."

Yukimura wasn't too surprised when Reiko took her service game in return. He was still unable to render her Samurai Serve useless, and it didn't seem to have any debilitating effects on her stamina. Still, he wondered at the cost for the organizers. Reiko was destroying a ball every single time she served. It was no large cost since she was only playing one match but if she had throughout the season...

"Game, Hyotei's Echizen! 2 games to 1. Change court!"

As she brushed past him, Reiko had to force thoughts of another time and another place where they had changed court. Those were the happier times. The period of time when they were dancing around each other, skirting the topic of whether they were interested in one another or not…

Those were the times that she would do well to forget. She sipped from her bottle of water absently. Her feet led the way to the baseline to receiving position from pure muscle memory, for that was how lost in thought she was, fighting back those memories.

It only took Yukimura's serve hurtling past her ear for her to snap out of her daze. "Assassin's Serve." He intoned, just barely loud enough for her to hear.

The challenge was clear. A serve that was so fast that it hit you before you knew it. That you could barely see. Reiko would bet that if she returned it, its spin was such that probably would affect her return as well.

So, she had threatened destruction and annihilation.

And here he was returning it with assassination and espionage.

Oh, how fitting. _Who was the one who pretended interest to hurt Hyotei's chances? Who pretended to be someone he wasn't?_ Reiko's mind demanded, bringing out images of Yukimura as she had seen him at Rikkaidai's fair. It hurt to remember it, even as she managed to return the serve only to have it declared out.

During that split second, she felt defeat seep through her bones. She was so very tired of this, after all. It was so tempting to forfeit. Or to lose. And just let ojii-sama have his way and make the calls.

"Don't you dare, Ray!" Kevin yelled from where he was on the sidelines. "You promised!"

* * *

"_Promise me, Ray." Kevin pressed. "Promise me that no matter how hard it gets, you'll see this through to the bitter end. To the end of the match, no matter what. That forfeiture with Tezuka doesn't count. Echizen-Takeuchi Reiko doesn't forfeit. Neither does she give up. Promise me that you would see your plan through, even if you fail."_

* * *

The courts were silent after that yell.

It was as though time had frozen temporary, until Reiko gave the blonde the barest of nods.

The silence was broken by the sharp _thwack_ of racquet strings meeting tennis ball as Yukimura sent another Assassin's Serve whizzing towards Reiko. The Princess's eyes narrowed and she slammed it back at the Demigod.

Shadow Sound was his choice of return technique.

_I don't care what memories that technique has!_ Reiko cried at her subconscious, ramming the ball back into his court with her cousin's Venuse. What could she say? They trained together, and they had perfected that technique together after all.

"30 – 15!" The referee called.

Yukimura was the one who broke the silence between them. Speaking directly to Reiko, his tone was accusatory as he harshly served the ball into her court. "Don't speak of being used when you're the one who was the user who rebounded, Echizen Reiko."

* * *

Take a snapshot of their eyes at that exact moment.

Amethyst and amber.

The large amber cat-like eyes has just begun to show hints of disbelief at the other's words.

Both hold the same determination to wreak havoc on the other, to destroy the other's spirit, and to win. Yet under that layer of faux conviction lie the same confusion as to _why_ and the maelstrom of hurt feelings that are quickly spiraling out of control.

This is more than _just_ a tennis match for these two who live and breathe tennis.

Their relationship hangs in the balance, hedged entirely on this one final match.

* * *

**A/N: **Rather short, but it felt like the right place to end the chapter. Yes, I know cliffhangers are the bane of any reader's existence but if I'd continued from on… Well, you'd have a final chapter that's more than double this chapter and it just felt too long. The final chapter's coming next week (not counting the epilogue, of course) so I hope I'll see you then! Enjoy! -iirse


	26. XXIV: Love, Love, Love

**A/N:** I'm guessing the cliffhanger sucked so… Read on. -iirse

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Chapter 24 – **_**Love, Love, Love**_

Reiko could scarcely believe the words her ex-boyfriend flung at her, along with the ball he served. Luckily for her, the disbelief quickly melted into rage that propelled her to the ball, sending it back across the net as she bitterly countered. "Checking to see if your attempt to hurt me worked?"

"Considering how blatant the two of you are, I didn't have to _check_." Yukimura spat, his return flying to her at high speed. She hadn't denied it.

The Princess rolled her eyes, and took her place in the center of the baseline after slamming back the ball. "Your data's still mada mada."

"So it was all a farce, wasn't it." The blunette's words were more of a quietly dangerous statement than a question. _So my suspicions were right: our relationship was nothing but a sham. She was dating that blonde all along._

His ball smoothly entered her range with the aid of the technique she and Ryoga had bastardized from their father. Reiko sent it back wordlessly. _He's admitting that he was using me all along, then._

Yukimura's next choice of technique only seemed to confirm it, as Sanada's Ka smashed into her court. It was the same technique that had rendered Tezuka Zone useless and to Reiko, it was nothing but damning evidence.

"30 – all!"

"I'm not foolish enough to trust someone twice. I don't care to be used, Yukimura Seiichi." Echizen-Takeuchi Reiko's voice was as cold as Atobe's Ice World as she let his Assassin's Serve slide past her.

Once.

And then again.

"Game, Yukimura, 2 games all!"

* * *

Watching the game on court spiral out of control, Tezuka felt understanding finally strike him. In his last match, what he had said about loyalty and Rikkaidai had been underhand, but he had never expected Echizen to be unable to return that rather easy ball.

To his understanding, Atobe was captain of Hyotei and he allowed himself to associate with Rikkaidai outside of competition as well. Hyotei would hardly see Echizen's relationship with Yukimura as harming his team. Especially not when Echizen was his cousin.

No, those words were said to bruise, not to cut.

But it had stabbed Echizen deeper than expected, seeing how Atobe had intervened and forced his cousin and player to forfeit the match.

Tezuka understood now. His words then had merely reminded Hyotei's Princess (she was no longer Seigaku's, after all) of the effects of putting trust into a rival team, the way she had when she had gotten involved with Yukimura. He hadn't been aware that they had fallen out till this match, though. Seigaku's usual fount of information, otherwise known as Inui, had been deficient in reporting this fact.

The brunette's eyes automatically sought out the figure of the bespectacled data player as he thought of it, only to find him with Rikkaidai's Yanagi.

What had Atobe said again?

"_Inui just easily gave Rei's phone number to Yanagi. In the pro circuits, someone who gives one piece of information is liable to give more. This might not be in those circuits, but nonetheless..."_

Yanagi and Inui had been in constant contact. Surely something like this would have come to light during their conversations. After all, Reiko and Yukimura had been viewed as the next power couple of the high school circuit, their match long anticipated, should it ever come to pass. Especially since Reiko wasn't in Seigaku anymore, telling Inui things about a common rival should be no issue for Yanagi…

"Tezuka?" Oishi questioned, wondering what was with the look on his captain's face. It was a look normally associated with deep consideration – lineup decisions and their ilk. But there weren't any more matches left to arrange. Oishi wondered just what his captain was thinking of then.

Seigaku's captain blinked the glaze that had covered his eyes while sunk in thought. "Let Inui know I'd like to speak to him later, please, Oishi."

* * *

"You're one to talk of using, Echizen Reiko." Yukimura finally replied, when he attempted (and failed) to return her Samurai Serve for a second time, a game or two later. Insisting on having the last word had seemed childish at the 2-game mark, but her words had only festered in his mind, and Yukimura could hold it in no longer.

"30 – Love!"

She merely arched a delicate brow at him. "Oh?"

On the stands, Atobe would have smirked if the atmosphere wasn't so tense. Her Takeuchi blood was showing, definitely. "Mmhm." Yukimura made a sound of self-agreement as he once again failed in returning the serve. It seemed like Reiko would be clinging to her service game then. "You're simply using your family and money to cover up what you've done."

"40 – Love!"

Reiko's serve for match point whizzed past Yukimura mercilessly. "I have nothing to cover up. If I truly wanted to use money and family, _Yukimura_," She spat out his family name. "You won't be standing here today. You won't even be in Rikkaidai. You won't be able to afford it."

It was so quiet you could hear the birds chirping outside the stadium. Uneasily, the referee declared. "Game, Echizen, 5 games to 4!"

He paled as she moved easily to receiving position, continuing. "Consider it a mercy that you're playing now. Though I'm not sure you will after our game, of course." Reiko smirked.

_I can't lose to him. Never again._

"You only know to flaunt, _Echizen_." He retaliated. Inwardly, Reiko winced – he hadn't called her by surname alone since early on in her return to Japan. "Make what lies you want, but on this court, I know the truth."

Incensed by his implication, the greenette smashed the ball he served to her to the net. It dropped over, divided into quarters from the pure power that she had put behind it. "Don't make yourself out to be such a martyr, Yukimura Seiichi, when _you_ were the one to cheat."

* * *

Atobe had, upon hearing his cousin's words, automatically scanned the crowd of spectators for the cause of all this trouble. Yukimura was startled. He hid it well, but it was glaringly obvious enough to Atobe – Rikkadai's captain didn't remember a thing. His eyes met Sanada's damningly.

To his surprise, the Emperor didn't return it with any defiant stare. Sanada merely inclined his head in acceptance of Atobe's censure.

He had been thinking after his match with Hyotei's diva after all.

Of course he knew what he wanted. He wanted Yukimura to see him, not Echizen. Never Echizen.

But he'd had years to do something about his feelings, after all. Since middle school till now, he had taken no action. If he were honest with himself, Sanada would admit that he feared the outcome. The chances of Seiichi accepting him were slim. The chances that Seiichi wouldn't let it affect their friendship were only marginally better.

The most likely thing to happen was the destruction of their friendship.

And as they said, "something's better than nothing."

It was fear of regretting his actions that had held him back all these years. And it was a very real fear. Words, once spoken, couldn't be taken back. Actions, once executed, couldn't be undone.

The latter was something that he'd discovered after his drunken escapade. What he did while drunk… It wasn't something he would have done, if he hadn't been inebriated. There was a reason why alcohol was called liquid courage, it would seem. But in the aftermath… Seeing Seiichi so miserable over Echizen… It had ate at Sanada and the Emperor found himself regretting it more and more as the days went by. The guilt, especially, had been terrible.

Atobe wasn't in much position to pass objective judgment, but his censure, Sanada could accept in this case, because he understood the heir's sentiments.

He hated to admit it, but Atobe was likely to be right.

Regret now over what he'd done was too late. But it wasn't too late for prevention of worse, was it?

* * *

With Reiko's open declaration that Yukimura had cheated on her came the rising noise from the crowd of spectators that had gathered to watch Nationals Finals. They had been the best of the circuit in middle school once, and now they faced off again. Add that to the fact that people knew that they had been dating, and the scandal of Reiko leaving Seigaku for Hyotei… It generated a lot of buzz.

But to Yukimura, all this sounds were nothing beyond white noise.

He had… _cheated?_

Was Reiko high on something?

He managed to win another game in his daze of shock, but Reiko snagged another two and was declared winner. "Game, set and match, Hyotei's Echizen, 7 games to 5! Hyotei wins, 3 matches to 2!"

Strangely enough, the tournament grounds were silent as they met at the net. Both had match formalities too ingrained into them to forgo it.

Or at least that was the case for Yukimura.

In Reiko's mind, she only decided to go through with the customary handshake because the last time she had forgone it, her conscience had made her seek out Yukimura after the match. And she certainly didn't want to do it again.

But Yukimura didn't want to let go of her hand. "What did you mean by I cheated on you?"

"What?" She stared at him. "Don't play dumb with me."

He only griped harder. "I'm not, Echizen. Reiko. I'm serious here."

"What did you mean that I rebounded on you then?" She shot back, finally freeing her hand and rubbing it. Geez, his grip was strong for someone who looked that gentle. But then again, she should know better, considering who her brother-in-law was…

Yukimura blinked at her. "You mean you're not dating that Smith guy?"

To both their surprise, Reiko actually laughed. "Are you serious? Kevin's like oyaji's third son. He's simply just another Kei or another anuie. And I'm his best friend."

"I'm _your_ best friend, you mean, Ray!" The blonde yelled over from where he was, having heard that. "Hime-sama, don't you want your shower?"

"Coming!" She called back, turning to address Yukimura one last time. "I don't know where you get your ideas from, but Kevin isn't my boyfriend. At least I'm not the one making false accusations. Have a good life, Yukimura."

He stared after her. Reiko sounded so certain when she said she wasn't making false accusations… Something just wasn't right. As though his body moved without consulting his mind, he reached out and grabbed her wrist. "Can we talk? Properly? Something's not right."

Reiko was quiet for a long moment, uneasily studying her ex-boyfriend. Somehow, she wanted to know if he was telling the truth. Slowly, she nodded.

* * *

"Rei?" Rubbing her hair absently with a fluffy white towel, Reiko turned to see her cousin. What was _with_ people and calling her lately? Kevin, Yukimura… And now her cousin. She honestly just wanted to get the whole talk over with and then go home and sleep. Put him out of her mind, out of her _life_ for good.

Apparently, her annoyance showed, as Atobe held up his hands in the universal gesture for surrender. It might have had to do with the fact that she was glaring right at him. "I just wanted to remind you that we're having a celebratory party over at our place. Nothing majorly big; I'm not breaking out the alcohol since it's too early to get around otou-sama and okaa-sama."

She yawned. "I know. It was part of the 'reward' for winning Nationals, wasn't it?" Yes, they had bribed their team. As though winning wasn't enough for the proud Hyotei members.

"I just wanted to let you know that I extended the invitation to the other major players of the year." Atobe braced himself for the explosion, adding. "Seigaku and Rikkaidai included."

And in three… Two… One…

"Are you mad?" Reiko demanded, picking her jaw up from the ground. "Seigaku, fine. But _Rikkaidai?_"

Her cousin stared at her, his expression blank. "You agreed to talk with Yukimura, did you not?" She nodded. "So what's the problem? I know an olive branch when I see one. Just talk to him over at our place."

"It's a need for the truth." Reiko replied quietly. "And I asked also for you, Kei."

Atobe instantly ceased. It was rare that his cousin express concern for him so bluntly. "I'm fine, Rei. I thought about it after that match. Denial's not the only river in Egypt, but Confession isn't the only road available for one to tread."

"So?" She succinctly demanded a conclusion from him.

"So, I'm letting things be. Atobes don't pine on hopeless things." The diva ruffled her hair. "I'll be fine. Now, let's go, chibi."

Scowling, she reached up to pull at _his_ hair, threatening. "Don't make me shave this off again, Kei!"

* * *

Outside, Inui approached Tezuka after parting ways with Yanagi. "Oishi said you wished to speak with me, Tezuka?"

"Aa." Seigaku's captain affirmed. "I understand the season is over, but this still has to be said."

The data master looked at Tezuka curiously. "What has to be said, Tezuka?"

"For as long as you're still a part of Seigaku's tennis team, Inui, I expect you to keep your guard up." The brunette answered, giving him the near exact same words he'd once given Reiko. "In all areas, regardless of who the person is to you, Inui."

As he left the surprised Inui and walked off, Tezuka felt the slightest bit lighter. Yes, he hadn't been exactly fair to Reiko in the past, and this was late in the coming but at least he had done what he could to amend his accidental double standards.

* * *

Funny enough, despite their intention to talk, Yukimura and Reiko found themselves at different ends of the room at all times. When they got close, some trouble from either team would erupt and that was it.

For Reiko, it had first been Shitenhouji's Kintarou dragging her off to compete in eating burgers. He had to content himself with a burger match since he was refused a tennis one. Momoshiro had joined in for a second round and Reiko had wandered off.

But at that point, Yukimura was making sure the Trouble Trio weren't killing each other because Akaya had unintentionally really pissed Niou off, and even the Gentleman was having difficulty reining in his boyfriend.

By the time he had settled that, Reiko was fielding Mukahi and Shishido's argument over who had a better run this Nationals, despite the fact that they both had been playing in Doubles (and thus, had to take their partners into consideration as well) and Hyotei had been playing substandard and scraping through all the way to the end.

They had scarcely managed to finally meet at the buffet table, where Reiko helped herself to some onigiri when Kikumaru flailed over, going on about how they needed help because Kaidoh and Momoshiro were about to kill each other. Again.

Thankfully for them both, Reiko was saved from having to intervene again.

Salvation came in three forms: Niou (who had finally stopped trying to wreak havoc with Marui and Kirihara), Fuji and Oshitari.

"We'll take over from here, Echizen-chan." Oshitari assured her. "It can't be as bad as Kenya and I or Gakuto and Shishido."

Reiko and Fuji exchanged a _look_. Oshitari wasn't from Seigaku at any point. What did he know, really? The Seigaku sophomores could get that bad, and get worse. "They can't stand against me, puri."

"You'd just join in the fun, 'Haru-chan." Reiko deadpanned. "And Oshitari, you'll get distracted by your cousin and start arguing with him and drag _my_ cousin into it."

"Just go, Reiko." Fuji interjected. "We can handle this."

The siblings stared at each other, a long unspoken conversation going on, until Reiko gave in. She turned to Yukimura. "Lead the way then."

Just as she was about to follow the blunette, Fuji grabbed her wrist much like how Yukimura had done on court. "I forgot to tell you, Rei-chan. Tezuka gave Inui the same talking to that he gave you."

"So Kei did something, hm?" She looked up and coincidentally met Tezuka's eyes. Instead of scorn, she inclined her head slightly in acknowledgement of his actions before turning. "I'll talk to you later, Syuu-nii."

* * *

Strangely enough, though Reiko had told Yukimura to lead the way, she had been the one to decide where they would talk once she'd caught up. They ended up in one of Atobe-Takeuchi's many parlors – this one a personal favorite of Reiko's due to its less formal feel.

The seats were less lush, the carvings less ornate. It leaned more towards the minimalist modern home rather than the traditional old world opulence, and amidst the pictures scattered around were some that held more embarrassing stories rather than those of the perfect children.

It even had a beanbag, which she seated herself on.

Atobe swore that it was because of the beanbag that Reiko loved the room so much. It was so rarely used for entertaining that Ryoko had suggesting turning it into a study or relax room for her favorite and only niece since she liked it so much, but Reiko had refused – her suite already had those things anyway.

She would have used her suite, except that she wasn't too sure how she would like the truth.

If it was bad, she didn't want its memories associated with her suite. She might have to change rooms then, and not rooming beside Kei was annoying. She couldn't steal his shirts whenever she wanted to.

"Shoot." She simply said.

Yukimura started. He'd been studying the room that he'd been led into. "Shoot?"

Reiko rolled her eyes. "You wanted to talk, right? So talk." She explained as though she were speaking to a 2-year-old child.

"Why the note, the disappearance… Everything?" He tried to phrase it, but suddenly, the words were so difficult to find for all that they had been racing around his head since before the Kantou tournament... Since she left, actually. "Where did it all go wrong?"

Hysterical laughter bubbled up in her throat. "Are you asking me this? For real?" Reiko managed to say. Once she calmed down slightly, she spoke fairly levelly. "You cheated on me, Yukimura. That's enough reason for any girl to break up with a guy, isn't it? Then there was also the fact the more I thought about it, the more likely it seemed that you were just dating me to try and break my spirit and by that Hyotei's - since after, Hyotei is your hardest opponent this Nationals."

"I never cheated on you!" He protested, latching on to the first thing she said. The second, well, he had accused her of the same thing. He would deal with that later, Yukimura decided.

Reiko smiled sadly. "I thought you would try to deny it. I guess I'll have to thank Jiroh-senpai then." She walked over to a bookshelf, pulling out a well-worn copy of (insert book name here?). From within its pages, she extracted an envelope which she handed to him.

Yukimura frowned. The name written on the envelope wasn't in Japanese script but in English, but he could read it well enough: Takeuchi Reiko. Reiko'd never used her mother's maiden name before, to his knowledge.

As though sensing his confusion, the girl in question explained. "When ojii-sama named me heiress, my name was legally changed to Echizen-Takeuchi Reiko. The use of my mother's maiden name was a reminder of who I was after middle school." Because it was during middle school that they'd first interact and left a lasting impression on one another.

Reiko left those words unsaid, but Yukimura heard them all the same. Uneasy, he opened the envelope to reveal the plain glossy photo paper. Scrawled hastily across it, also in English that was far more refined that Akaya's chicken scratching, was a simple message:

_I have no doubt this would pain you, but you deserve the truth._

It was signed equally simply '_AJ_.'

From what Reiko said, Yukimura guessed that meant that the letter came from Akutagawa Jiroh. He flipped the sheet over and the image jumped out at him, shocking him beyond words.

"Guilt got your tongue?" Reiko asked sardonically after he'd lapsed into silence for too long.

Yukimura finally found his voice when prompted, it seemed. "Did you get it checked for doctoring?"

"You're suggesting that Jiroh did this? Are you kidding?" She started, incredulously. "If you must know, yes I did. I refused to believe what my own eyes saw. I thought it was the alcohol messing with my mind until I saw the photograph. Then I had the photograph checked. It's never been edited. Ever. I'm not that stupid, Yukimura Seiichi!"

Yukimura could only look between the upset Reiko and the photograph in his hands. He and Sanada? That was just absurd. "I swear on my life, on my sister's life, on everything I hold dear, that I've no recollection of this happening." He solemnly stated. "The last thing I remember was watching you go get water. The next thing I know, I was waking up in a guest room and reading your pittance of a letter."

The vow stopped Reiko from launching into another tirade. "Photos don't lie. That's one thing I learnt from Syuu-nii. People do, but photos don't."

"I'd swear that I'm not lying, but you won't believe me, would you?" He asked rhetorically.

Reiko was silent. This was a stalemate. She couldn't simply just allow herself to believe Yukimura like that. Yet he would not admit... It was like playing with a jigsaw puzzle whose pieces refused to fit.

Unless... Yukimura winced as he glanced at the photo again.

Reiko was adamant that Jiroh hadn't orchestrated anything. In all honesty, Yukimura agreed - the blonde had nothing to gain from it. Hyotei's Regulars viewed Reiko as one of their own. They wouldn't create a nefarious plot just to break them up. In fact, most of them enjoyed teasing their captain's cousin about it.

If neither of them knew what had happened, and Jiroh knew nothing, that left one person.

Sanada.

"Do you think...?" Reiko's tentatively voiced half-question drew his attention.

When Yukimura looked at her, he could tell she had drawn the same conclusion. "No one else would know what has happened that night, right? You saw what you saw. I remember what I remember. You say that what Jiroh saw collaborates with what you saw. The only person who would know is Sanada."

"But if he did, he wouldn't say anything of it." The Princess pointed out, her tone still uncertain. "You're friends. No matter what has come to pass, he'd still want to retain that friendship. If you do ask him, he'll know that it's up to him to say what he will - everything is hanging on that then."

It was true that Sanada had a stake in this.

"And it makes me think of what Akaya said before." Reiko added hesitantly. "He said that Sanada was always glaring at me and it was jealousy. He always said it, has said it more than once. You don't like it, and Akaya knew, so he'd tell me when you weren't around. Or message me."

She took a deep breath before admitting. "I've managed to turn fast enough to see it myself before. It's the look of jealousy that I've seen too many girls give me because Kei's my cousin, because I'm close to Oshitari..."

"Finally!" Atobe exclaimed as he entered the room. "Took you two long enough."

Reiko started to her feet in surprise, before she strode over to her cousin, punching him in the shoulder. "What the hell, Kei?"

"I'm not here to interrupt your little lovers' spat for long, chibi." Atobe blithely replied. "I just came to drop off the security discs I just retrieved. Yes, Rei, we have security discs down there. We just don't activate them. I'd forgotten that I had them activated that night because we were technically having an event."

"And Keisuke-jii-san's rules are that when we have an event, the cameras are turned on." Reiko completed the explanation for him, feeling rather stupid that she hadn't thought of it something like a month ago.

Her cousin ruffled her hair. "Don't feel so bad, chibi. I was reminded by a particular someone. I nearly forgot to instruct security to turn on the cameras for today as it is. It took a while to find the discs for the night in question, then the cameras in question and then the exact time, and then copying them out. Enjoy the show?"

She punched him again.

"And I was so kind as to retrieve your portable player for you too..." Atobe sighed melodramatically, handing over the sleek piece of technology. "Don't stay too long, chibi. Niou, Oshitari and Fuji can control their troublemaking urges to keep the peace for only so long, after all."

He departed, but Princess and Demigod were already staring at each other. This was their moment of truth.

Slowly, Reiko opened her player and slid the disc in.

* * *

The timestamp blares 3:00 AM in neon red.

Reiko stands up from where she was sitting with Seiichi. "I'm going to get some water to stave off hangovers. The maids should be coming down to show you to your rooms soon."

"Mm." Seiichi's eyes were drooping slightly. "Go ahead."

The Princess smiled quietly at her boyfriend before walking off-screen. You could see the slight spring in her step, even though she meandered slightly - a sure sign that she was under the influence of alcohol.

Within moments, Yukimura's eyes closed.

Then Sanada walked onscreen. His stride wasn't quite stable. If one were to compare it to Reiko's, she would have been certified sober. In fact, some would have thought that he would have collapsed on the ground even before he made it to Yukimura's side.

But he managed to get there before collapsing to his knees.

And then, he kissed him. His friend, captain, whatever.

The timestamp was 3:13 AM.

* * *

The camera blanked out before the timestamp blinks again – 3:11 AM.

This time, it's of Reiko exiting the kitchenette. She's holding 2 glasses of water. When she gets to the end of the corridor, she stops.

The glasses slip from her hands and shatter piercingly on the ground, but she doesn't seem to notice as she just walks off-screen once more.

The timestamp was 3:14 AM.

* * *

"I think I'm going to kill him." Yukimura finally said.

He'd been in shock after watching it, Reiko noticed. She had looked away. Seeing it once, and then again as photographic evidence, was enough. She didn't quite know what to say herself.

Her rage had drained from her like her blood would have if one were to slit her jugular.

Yukimura had shock and rage to carry him through on the emotional front, but Reiko didn't. She didn't quite know what to say. What to feel.

"Reiko?" He asked uncertainly, having just registered that she had been strangely silent since Atobe had left the room.

She didn't hear him. Or maybe she did. Whatever the case, he didn't manage to shake her from her thoughts. Reiko was too lost in her own world.

She'd already determined what exactly she would do after this conversation with Yukimura for she had been so certain of his guilt. She had intended to return to the professional circuits, finish high school via correspondent course and attain a degree the same way. She'd stay in the circuits until she got wind he was planning on entering. Then she'd take up her role as Takeuchi heiress.

It'd be precisely as she had outlined to Kevin.

Her family would have protested, but they would have understood that she needed to play tennis because it was her life, but she could no longer do it on Japanese soil with memories of Yukimura all around her.

Now… She was at a loss. The carpet whipped out from under her feet, so to speak. She was floundering in quicksand. And the whole host of other clichés that one could think of. Seiichi had been innocent of what she'd thought of him, and she was innocent of what he'd thought of her.

In effect, it was all a huge misunderstanding caused by one Sanada Genichirou who had been too drunk to control himself after being hung up over Yukimura for too long.

Reiko wondered why she hadn't seen it earlier. It had been so clear in middle school, and then all the instances that Akaya had pointed out. Kami-sama, Akaya had been right all along. He'd been warning her indirectly all along whether he meant to or not, and everyone had just dismissed his observations, attributing it to his overactive imagination.

"I swear I'm going to kill him." Yukimura muttered as he shook Reiko again. And the fact that it was _Seiichi_ and he was _swearing_ and threatening to _kill_ was enough to snap her back into reality. He had never slipped into a particularly murderous mood in front of her before. Gently sadistic, perhaps. Threateningly so, definitely. But not murderous.

_Kei would never be able to live with himself._

It was that thought that forced Reiko to think about it more sensibly, and try to see things with more objectivity than her (ex?) boyfriend was managing at the moment. "Seiichi, calm down."

In the future, Yukimura would say that it was the fact that she actually elected to voluntarily use his first name that stilled him, not the fact that he was completely whipped.

But for now, he did calm down. Sort of. "You're not upset?"

"I have to be insane not to be upset, but someone has to be mature here!" She shot back. "Sit down. Turn down the killer intent. No, I haven't been watching too much Naruto with Kevin to block you out of my head."

The last bit was enough to make him smile. Just slightly, but enough. And it calmed him a little.

He sat. "Alright. We'll be rational teenagers then. I want to kill him."

Reiko sighed. It had been too much to hope, apparently. "For what? Crushing on you since middle school?" She demanded. Oh, if that were the case, Sanada would have to kill Kei then. And then she would really have to destroy Sanada… That would be fun. But wait, Sanada would be too dead to kill Kei. Damn.

"Middle school?" Yukimura spluttered.

His ex-girlfriend blinked at him. "Mada mada… You didn't know? Think about it. It's obvious the fact that Kev dyes his hair with peroxide." Regardless of the fact that I don't have proof for that, she added to herself mentally. She returned her mind to the conversation at hand. "So you want to kill him for crushing on you. Wow. Why not kill the girls in your fan club then? Misaki-senpai did mention once that you had a huge one."

"You know why I want to kill him, Reiko." Yukimura ground out. The girl in question arched an eyebrow, silently daring him. "For that…" He gestured at the player, unable to put it to words.

"Then I guess I should kill you too." She drawled a la Oshitari. "After all, you should have fought him off, not just let him do as he will and create all that trouble…"

Again, the blunette spluttered. "I passed out!"

"And why?" She retorted.

"Because we were drunk, damn it!" He swore. Reiko didn't want to admit it, but making him swear was rather fun. Seeing him shed that peaceable mien was just… Fun. And the results were rather satisfying to the eye, of course. Not that she'd ever admit it. "You know that we were tipsy, drunk, inebriated! That's why you went to get the water. I pass out easily when under the influence." He admitted.

Reiko sighed. She wanted to play devil's advocate, not darling little angel. But really, blood was blood. And Kei didn't need any more on his plate. He wanted to get over Sanada (and that was one thing that she and Misaki both definitely approved of) but that wasn't going to happen if this nonsense was blown up all over the place.

And who knew who might slip up and what might slip out?

"Exactly, Seiichi." She sighed again. "'We were drunk. Think about it. He's kept quiet about this for years. He's never done anything."

Yukimura scoffed. "With his kind of family? I'm not surprised."

Reiko privately agreed, having met some of them at various gatherings. They were straight-laced, serious, conservative individuals. "He's raised to have control. Only inebriated did he _lose_ that control and slip up enough to have done such a thing." She paused, letting her words sink in before delivering the words that would shut and lock her door to revenge _and_ throw away the key.

"Let it go, Seii. I have."

* * *

Standing by the grand stair, flanked by Misaki and Jiroh (both who felt the same satisfaction but elected to be less flamboyant about it), Atobe smirked. He did feel amazingly pleased with himself considering how Reiko had returned to the room with Yukimura's arm around her waist, quiet smile painting her features.

Rikkaidai's captain had done nothing to Sanada, to Atobe's surprise, and he voiced the thought to Misaki, who laughed at him. Jiroh had to chuckle along at Atobe's lack of insight.

"Honestly, Keigo. Do you think Reiko-chan will let Yukimura-san do something like that? Blood _is_ blood, after all." The Nakamura heiress had pointed out.

Regardless, Sanada could tell that he owed the fact that he was still alive to someone. The silent thanks he'd sent Reiko's way had been coolly accepted. She couldn't do anything besides that unless she wanted to say exactly why she did it. And what was told in confidence in Hyotei stayed in confidence.

As he heard his cousin's laugh chime, Atobe smiled, sending a curt nod in Sanada's direction for the tip-off the other had given.

Reiko was happy, that was all that mattered.

Or at least it was, till Fuji Yuuta barreled into the room. "Reiko! I need help with English homework! Now! No, I'm not asking aniki!"

"Mou, why so cruel, Yuuta." Fuji (Syuusuke) teased, mocking a wounded heart to his younger brother's embarrassment.

Still, Atobe thought, it was nice to see that some things never changed.

* * *

**A/N:** So we've come to the end. It's rather rushed, I suppose but I only meant to write to the end of the season and that was it. To digress, it almost _wasn't_ the end, because Reiko almost ran away when faced with the truth. But it would have either been too repetitive or going into the whole cliché _x_ number of years later thing that gets really old.

So, here we are. I hope I managed to tie up the loose ends nicely. Epilogue will be up next week, so I guess see you one last time next week? (: -iirse


	27. Epilogue

**Disclaimer: **Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

**As Fate Wills It**

**Epilogue**

"The Nationals Finals Singles 1 match will now commence. Hyotei's Echizen Reiko versus Rikkaidai's Kirihara Akaya." The referee announced.

It was a year later. Hyotei and Rikkaidai were fighting over who would claim the title of National champions again. Hyotei, under the captaincy of Ohtori Choutarou, and the co-vice-captaincy of Echizen Reiko and Kevin Smith versus Rikkaidai which was captained by Kirihara Akaya, backed by no one.

"I don't want to play you, 'nee-chan!" Akaya complained as he shook her hand lightly at the net.

Reiko smirked at him. "Too bad, Aka-chan." She had adopted her boyfriend's name for him after a while. Couples did rub off one another, after all. "Smooth, of course."

"I don't even feel like trying." The seaweed head whined. "Oh, your serve. But 'Mura-buchou will kill me if I didn't because…"

"Losing isn't allowed. I know." Reiko's smirk only grew more obvious.

Akaya muttered. "You should. You happen to be dating him for a year and counting now."

Hearing him, Reiko only laughed, making her way to position to serve.

Yanagi had accepted Yukimura's invitation to go watch the Finals of the high school Nationals matches. He'd expected the blunette to go: his girlfriend _was_ playing after all. He was just surprised to find the remaining member of Rikkaidai's Troika missing.

Yukimura just shrugged when questioned, but inwardly admitted that it was because he still didn't feel that comfortable around his old friend. With their entrance into university, he's leaned towards Art while Sanada had gone into some business course or other that would help him when he entered the family business. Yanagi had gone into some nutritional research alongside Inui.

The Golden Three of Rikkaidai had, for lack of a better word, drifted.

This year's Golden Three belonged to Hyotei. Ohtori, Smith and Echizen. They'd taken the circuit by storm. Everyone had assumed Ohtori was useless without Shishido by his side, but he'd proved them wrong. He actually played singles.

They thought him daft for putting Smith and Echizen in Doubles 1. The best friends wiped the court with their opponents' asses - They were best friends, after all.

Reiko had confided in Seiichi that it had been so amusing to be underestimated all over again. She'd grown tired of her reputation after a while. The cautious player was never as fun – they didn't have a high horse that Reiko could pull them off.

The cautious player now was Akaya.

Logically, Seiichi knew that Rikkaidai's Devil faced decent odds. He had trained him well, and his successor still met with the old team to train regularly. With regard to those meetings, Kirihara never mentioned how Sanada and Yukimura seldom attended a gathering where the other was present. Nor did he mention that Sanada would _never_ be present if Yukimura met up with the old team with Reiko.

It would seem that though astute, the brash teen had finally learnt how to keep his mouth shut.

Yukimura glanced over to Hyotei's side of the court, earning himself a knowing look from Yanagi. "It's hard to decide who to support, isn't it? The brat that we trained to take over after we graduated or the girl that you're absolutely besotted with."

Yanagi never got an answer. Yukimura's eyes were too focused on the chain around his girlfriend's neck, from which he knew hung the pendant that he'd gifted her at the end of the last school year. Oh well, it had been rhetorical anyway.

* * *

It was a nice platinum chain. Definitely high quality, Ryoko decided as she surveyed her niece's choice of accessories of the night. It wasn't just the night after graduation. It was also the night of Reiko's coming out party.

The pendant wasn't made for an event like this, Ryoko determined.

"Reiko-chan, wouldn't you consider wearing the yellow diamonds, at least? They're small." She tried persuading her stubborn niece, whose hand reached up to grasp the pendant that dangled down.

It wasn't even made of an expensive metal. Just a plain enough thing, set in platinum in the back, with a protective layer of glaze painted over. While it was simplistic and the silver went decently with the deep teal-green dress that Reiko was wearing...

"Just let her do what she wants, okaa-sama." Atobe called as he entered the room. "Chibi wouldn't take off that necklace. You'd have to pry it from her cold, dead hands."

Atobe Ryoko glared at her son. "What a way to put things, Keigo! And on your cousin's coming out party, too!" She turned her glare to her snickering niece. "Reiko, let me see that."

She flipped the pendant over before her niece had a chance to protest. The engraving on the back was simple enough: an elegantly entwined _R_ and _S_ in roman script. A closer look at the front told her all she needed to know. She knew a school crest when she saw one, for all that she was most familiar with Hyotei's.

"Keep it on then." She smiled knowingly at the blushing Reiko, much to Atobe's endless amusement.

* * *

It was Echizen-Takeuchi Reiko's coming out party. She was certainly _expected_ to dance with whichever eligible male that came her way. But when did she obey convention, anyway?

Reiko spent most of the night with Yukimura once she had done the requiste rounds of speaking to the most important people. The rest, she decided, could stuff it, while she enjoyed her 'early birthday party' with Seiichi.

If they wanted to speak of inferior blood, they could go stuff their opinions up their backsides.

Seiichi laughed when she told him that.

Instinctively, their hands intertwined and tightened around each other's.

Who would have thought an action so simple, from so long ago, would have brought them to their relationship today?

Well, fate _would_ have its way, after all…

* * *

**A/N: **So we've come to the end of _As Fate Wills It_. I had to make some reference to the title at the end! I originally intended for it to be merely Nationals Finals and that's it, but the words kept coming.

A part of me doesn't want to let go of Seiichi and Reiko – I've been writing them for more than two years now so they're familiar and comfortable characters to play with. But at the same time, writing this has really exhausted my capacity for writing POT. It'll be a while before I think of doing anything major for this fandom. I'll be working on _**Untitled: the Hidden History**_ (D Gray-Man, also a multi-chaptered story) after this instead.

In any case, thank you taking the time to read all the way to this point, for the pretty reviews, and the favorites and alerts. Well, you know what I mean! They make me feel like I did something somewhat near passable and not utter complete rubbish! Thanks! –iirse

P.S. It feels weird not typing "See you next week" anymore.


End file.
